Bionicle Travels 1: New World
by TigerToa
Summary: The Toa Nuva come to a new land and have to find each other and survive. Rated T for brief violent scenes and a few graphic moments. TahuxGali. IN PROCESS OF EDITING.
1. Chapter 1: A New Land

A/N This is my first ever fan fiction to publish, so I'm a little nervous. Please RNR so I know I'm not the only one reading this :). Just a side note, yes, these are the Toa Nuva. This is in some alternate universe in which Makuta Teridax take-over plans _didn't_ work, and their homeland isn't currently under the threat of totalitarian dictatorship. They have this cool human-armor now because they were still wearing the adaptable armor from Artakha. Also, if you think I'm making the Toa seem too weak, don't worry, it's just from the whole transformation/ transportal thing. I'll elaborate more later (don't want to spoil the story), but basically, some of them react kind of strongly to it. Also, humans are much weaker than Bionicles, and the Toa are subsequently weaker because of the change. Um, I think that's all I need to say, so... please enjoy!

And this is the edited version of this chapter, so that's why it may seem a little different than what you might remember.  Thanks!!! Please RNR!!

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_SPLASH_! A silver-white figure landed in the moonlit water. A young girl on shore looked up from her book, startled. _I've got to stop reading those suspense books late at night_, she thought with a shiver, staring out at the water. From the small dock where she sat, she saw what looked to be an armored young man pull himself onto a small wood raft. With nothing to grab, the boy found it hard to hold onto the slick planks, and began to slip. The girl dropped her book and dove into the water, ignoring the fact that she was fully clothed. The others in her group didn't even notice her sudden urge to swim in the dark, frigid waters, just as they had taken no notice of the sudden appearance of the armored stranger. She quickly swam over and climbed onto the raft, using the ladder on the other side. Reaching out, she found his hand and pulled him aboard. He lay there, face down, breathing hard. The young girl pushed herself up to look at him. In the dim lighting, she could see that his armor was mostly pale silver, darkest on his chest and upper torso, and fading into a near white along his lower legs and arms. He wore no helmet or any other head protection, merely a black headband, to keep his long, white hair out of his face. He watched her cautiously then forced himself up, wincing. His eyes were a startling pale blue, and he had such fierce look that the girl instinctively scooted back.

"Are you hurt?" she asked.

"I'm fine," came the brusque, strained reply. The girl looked at him more closely, and saw a gash in his shirt, where his armor didn't protect him. His arm underneath was bloodied.

"You're bleeding," she pointed out gently.

He glanced at his arm and shrugged, wincing.

"Can you swim? With all that armor, I mean," she asked in a hushed tone.

The strange young man nodded, moving his long double-bladed sword to his shield hand. The girl silently slid into the water, and he followed. Her hand found his free one, and she gently placed it around her shoulders. He frowned, but made no move to remove it until they were on the land dock. The girl grabbed a towel and began to dry off, but he lay there, still; his breath heavier than earlier.

"Hey, you've gotta dry off. You'll catch your chill, soaked to the bone like that," the girl said, talking to fill the silence of the dark evening. Slowly, the silver-white stranger opened his eyes and looked at her. "Here," she held out the towel. He took it, and, sitting up, began to take off his wet armor, still watching her suspiciously. He dried off a bit then doubled over in pain.

"Ohhhh…" he moaned weakly, grasping his arm tightly. The girl caught him as he fell over, unconscious.

"Hello? Are you ok?" she asked. No reply. _Stupid, stupid question_, she thought. The girl half carried, half dragged the unconscious boy to a small wooded area near the lake. Knowing her absence wouldn't go unnoticed forever, the girl left him there, along with his armor, double sword, and white shield with a dry towel laid over him as feeble protection against the cold night ahead.

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"Are you sure you haven't seen any of them?" A young man in red armor asked his companion, for what would appear to be the hundredth time. He ran his hand trough his reddish-brown hair in irritation.

"I'm sure I didn't spotsee anyone, Firebrother," his companion in green armor said from a tree branch overhead. The younger of the two was following his friend from the trees above, his green armor blending into the dark foliage. "I spoketold you that evermany times." The two armored young men were traveling slowly through the dark forest.

The red armored one frowned, unsheathing a large blade from his back. It began to glow red hot the moment his hands touched it.

"Careful, Tahu," the green armored person said, dropping to the forest floor and holding up his hands. "No need to show everyone where we are,"

Tahu sheathed his blade. "I know, brother. It's just that we could be walking right by them, and not even notice," he growled. Neither spoke for a long while. Feeling a need to say something, Tahu looked around. "Lewa, beneath you!" he exclaimed. Lewa looked down. His legs were sinking into a thick mud, and the same was happening to Tahu. He reached to unsheathe his fire-sword, but Lewa violently shook his head.

"Don't, Toa-brother," he said. "This is a bogswamp. Many gasses. One flame in the wrong place and _whoosh_!" Lewa flung his arms up to demonstrate. "You'll skyblast us both."

Tahu sighed in frustration. Lewa was reaching for a tree branch.

"Use your Mask of Levitation!" Tahu suggested.

"I don't exactly have it on right now!" Lewa snapped. He grabbed the tree branch and pulled himself up. Tahu slowly half swam, half waded his way over, and Lewa grabbed his outstretched hand. He pulled his brother out of the thick swamp mud, nearly falling off his tree branch one too many times for either of their comfort.

Tahu was the first to catch his breath. "Why didn't…we see that…swamp…earlier?" he asked slowly.

"It…wasn't there… earlier!" Lewa replied, chest heaving.

"Then…where did it come from?" Both Toa looked at each other, hoping the other would have some explanation for the strange events.

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A young, dark-skinned woman sat in front of a fire, hugging a blue armored leg close to her chest. The other leg was out in front of her, crudely splinted with two thick, sturdy branches and a few vines. Beside her, a dark haired man slept, arm and chest wrapped tightly with black cloth. His black and grey armor lay near him, the chest plate slightly scorched. The woman's other companion, a brown armored young man with blackish brown hair sat, poking the fire with a branch.

"I wish we knew where the others are," she said softly, her voice carrying an undercurrent of worry. In the quiet of the dark forest, her voice carried well.

"Yeah, me too, Gali," the brown-haired boy said.

Gali glanced at their sleeping companion, her dark face showing her frustrated concern. "If only there was something more we could do for him, Pohatu. I hate feeling so helpless," She said, a bit harshly.

Pohatu nodded, putting a protective arm around Gali. "I know, but Onua's strong, even without his mask. He'll be all right. All he needs now is rest," He turned his head to look at his sister, his bright brown eyes meeting her blue ones. "You need some rest too. Your leg needs time to heal."

Gali smiled and rolled her eyes, but lay down. "All right, but be sure to wake me after a while. I'm taking the second guard shift," she said.

Pohatu nodded and looked around the small clearing. Nothing in the surrounding forest seemed out of the ordinary, but, as he had never been to this land before, how would he know? The Toa of Stone leaned back against a tree trunk, settling in for the long night ahead.

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"Do you know if he's awake?"

"Is he even alive?" _poke, poke_.

"Better not touch him. He might chop your hand off with that spear of his."

"Go get Dad. He might know what he is."

Voices. So many voices. The golden armored boy opened his eyes slightly, staring at the blurred grass in front of him. He stirred slightly, pushing himself up off the ground.

"Whoa!"

"He's alive!"

The young man stood and looked around dazedly. Two male children, one eleven years old and one six years old, stared at him in wonder.

"Uh, hi," he said hesitantly.

"Did you hear that? He can talk!" the littlest boy said excitedly.

"Of course I heard him," the older boy snapped. "Can you…understand me?" he asked.

The armored man nodded. He shakily pushed himself to his feet, causing the older boy to pull the younger one back.

"What's your name?" the little boy asked, not at all intimidated.

"T-Takanuva," the young man in golden armor replied. He could hear someone else coming through the brush, and automatically tensed, taking a fighting pose.

"Hey boys, what did you…?" The older man stopped, eyeing Takanuva curiously. Uncomfortable, the young man looked down, avoiding the stranger's gaze.

"This is Takanuva, Dad," the oldest boy said. A younger kid, about eight or nine, joined them.

"We found him, and he just woke up!" Added the six year old.

"Oh," the dad said. "Well, hello then, Takanuva," he held out his hand. Takanuva regarded it for a moment then copied the gesture. The boy's dad shook his hand and released it. "So, what are you doing out here?" he asked.

"Uhhh, I got lost," Takanuva said hesitantly. For a being of his power, he felt a little intimidated by all these people.

"It's okay, you don't have to tell us your whole life story," the dad chuckled good-naturedly. "Come with me, and let's see if we can help you find your way," he turned to leave, motioning for Takanuva to follow.

Takanuva, feeling a bit better about these people, took a step forward. Beneath him, the forest seemed to tip and sway as a wave of nausea overcame him. Losing his balance, Takanuva fell to his knees and hurled, right there on the forest floor.

The boy's dad noticed right away. "Isaac, Tim, go back to the house and tell your mother what happened," he said, kneeling next to the weak young man. The two youngest boys darted off with frequent backward glances. "Jake, can you help me get him onto his feet?" He then asked his oldest.

Jake quickly complied, and the two of them soon had Takanuva on his feet, albeit unsteadily.

"Can you walk a bit, Takanuva?" the dad asked.

Still leaning heavily on Jake, Takanuva shook his head slightly.

"Here, put your arm around my shoulder," Jake's dad instructed, guiding Takanuva's arm. "Can you make it with our help?" he asked gently.

Takanuva nodded a bit, eyes closed as another wave of dizziness hit him.

"C'mon then. It's not that far," the dad said as they slowly made their way out of the forest.


	2. Chapter 2: First Encounter

And here's the second chapter! Sorry it's a bit short, but I'm trying to make it last longer (with college classes, choir, and everything else, it's a little hard to find time to write). Don't worry, this story isn't totally Kopaka-centric, he's just really fun to write about (and my favorite Toa). He's probably still mad at me for knocking him out in the first chapter, but it was the only way to make him hold still long enough to actually meet someone! Anyway, thank you everyone for reviewing, especially wolf girl811, who was the first to review. And I know it's a bit confusing right now, but I'll explain more along the way.

Ah! I knew I'd forget to add something in the first chapter! Disclaimer: I do not own Bionicle in any way, shape, or form, only a few Bionicle figures, which don't really count, and I'm not making any money whatsoever on this fan fiction.

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Kopaka's first thought when he woke up was panic. He was in an unfamiliar place, without his armor, he felt incredibly weak, and his arm was bleeding. His second instant of consciousness, his recent memory all came rushing back to him: the hurricane-like feel of the transportation blast, the moments of confusion and shock at his and his brother's and sister's (and his own) transformations, the ambush that had sent them running in different directions, the blast that sent him hurdling into the water, and the girl who had saved his life. He paused a bit at this then sat up cautiously. Aside from the throbbing in his arm, he felt fine, a little drained, but no other injuries. Next to him, his armor was neatly stacked, along with his ice blade and his shield. Kopaka frowned in confusion, but put his armor on, all but the piece that would go over his wound. The gash on his arm was too painful. He had turned to leave when he heard someone coming through the forest. Kopaka turned to face his attacker, then saw the face of his rescuer. She was a pretty girl, not gorgeous, but pleasant, with long brown hair, a round face, and dark brown eyes.

"Hi," she said softly. "I brought you something to eat, in case you were hungry," She held out a small, flat dish of… something. Having been human for only ten to twelve hours, Kopaka had never seen anything like the food she handed him. He took the plate and tentatively tasted it. The flat, golden-brown things were good, as were the brown strips and yellow crumbly stuff. He finished it quickly

"Thank you," Kopaka said, handing her the empty plate.

"You liked it? I made it myself," she said, cheeks a bit pink. "M-my name's Lanie, by the way. Short for Elaine," she added.

"Kopaka," he replied. The Toa of Ice truly wanted to leave, but he somehow felt compelled to stay.

"How's your arm? Do you want me to look at it?" Lanie asked.

Kopaka considered refusing, but something about her sincere concern struck a chord in him, so held up his arm a little. Lanie gently pulled back the torn shirt.

"It's healing up well; I don't think it's deep enough that you'll need stitches, but you'll want to keep that armor of it. Just till it heals fully," she said matter-of-factly.

Kopaka nodded and watched Lanie cautiously. She held his gaze calmly, never wavering from his icy blue eyes.

"Lanie!" The call shattered the silence of the forest.

"I'll have to leave soon," Lanie murmured. Kopaka rose and turned to leave. "No, wait!" she said. The Toa of Ice turned to look at her. "Where are you going?" she asked. "Do you have somewhere to go?"

Kopaka paused then shook his head. He hadn't thought of where to go, just wanted to leave.

Lanie continued on. "I mean, if you don't have anywhere to go, you could, maybe…" she trailed off and averted her gaze, blushing.

"Hey, Lanie, where have we…oh, hi." A young man, about 20, appeared from the underbrush, looking surprised. Kopaka in turn gave him his signature glare.

"Oh, hi Sam. This is Kopaka. Kopaka, this is my brother, Sam," Lanie said. The young men nodded in greeting. "I found him last night, in the water," Lanie explained.

Sam looked at her oddly. "Well, that would explain your wet attire last night," he said with a chuckle.

"He doesn't have anywhere to go," Lanie continued, "And I was thinking, maybe he could stay with us, or something."

Both guys looked at her.

"What?" Sam asked.

"Come on, Sam. It's not like Mom and Dad would say no. They probably wouldn't even notice he's there, if they're even home," Lanie retorted.

"Yeah, but…" Sam started to say.

"No," Kopaka said, cutting off their trivial argument, and turned to leave.

"Where are you going?" Lanie called. "Where do you have to go?"

"What are you doing?" Sam whispered to his sister.

Lanie glared back at him, and turned to look imploringly at the departing Toa.

Kopaka turned back and looked at the two people standing in the foliage of the unfamiliar forest. As much as he hated to admit it, the girl was right. Kopaka had nowhere to go. The blast that brought him here had sent him hurdling through the sky. He had no idea where from it had sent him, nor did he know where to look for his brothers and sister. If he was to survive in this unfamiliar, strange land, he would need help. And that help was standing a little ways off, partially hidden by the thick foliage. The Toa of Ice turned back to the girl and boy watching him.

"All right," he said. "I will _listen_ to your idea."

"I hope you know what you're doing," Sam muttered out of the side of his mouth.


	3. Chapter 3: Caught!

And here is the third chapter to the Bionicle Travels series! Thank you so much for all of your reviews, especially my self-proclaimed loyal fan Twilight Spectrum, and also Athena's Assassin, Alykon, Bookman Jr, and wolfgirl811 for encouraging me to update more than once a week, as was my original plan.

This section may be a bit odd and/or unrealistic, but I couldn't find any other way to get them down from the tree. Oh, and if Tahu ever finds me and kills me because of this (though, if he doesn't do so for this part, he probably will later on), I'm sorry, and I probably won't update anymore. You know, being dead and all.

Disclaimer: The only Lego-related thing i own is my personal collection of Bionicle figures, which doesn't count as owning anything in the copyright world, and I credit the makers of Bionicle for the creation of these amazing characters.

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Tahu opened his eyes and looked around the wooded area, now flooded with sunlight. Below him, there was no indication that a treacherous swamp was ever there. The Toa of Fire looked over to see Lewa casually draped over a branch, sound asleep. _He could sleep through a hurricane,_ Tahu thought amusedly. He, on the other hand, had spent a long night up in that tree, afraid of falling into the swamp below. He turned his attention the swamp below, or at least what he thought was a swamp. It looked so peaceful now. Tahu grabbed a loose branch and, curious, dropped it. The branch hit the grassy green below, and the ground appeared to undulate a bit. _Is that supposed to happen?_ Tahu wondered. The branch slowly began to sink beneath the placid green surface, revealing a thick, murky liquid below.

"Hey, what happened to that tree branch?" Lewa asked, blinking in the bright morning light.

"Turns out this world has bogs, too," Tahu said, watching the tree branch slowly disappear. The two Toa watched where the branch had disappeared for a while then turned their minds to more practical matters.

"How will we get down?" Lewa wondered aloud.

Tahu shrugged. He wasn't to fond of climbing trees as it was, and didn't feel like embarrassing himself in front of his brother.

"To bad the other trees aren't nearer," Lewa said. He then began to climb higher.

"Lewa, wait!" Tahu scrambled up after him. Suddenly, a round, orangeish-yellow object dropped down on him.

"Here, catch," Tahu had instinctively reached out and caught it already, and was about to ask what it was, only to see Lewa dangling from a branch above him, a half eaten one in his hand. "Eat it, it's good!" he said, mouth full of the yellow stuff.

Tahu sniffed it cautiously. It smelled delicious. He took a tentative bite as Lewa finished off his own. Tahu quickly finished the juicy, sweet food.

"Where did you find it?" He asked.

"Up here. There's ton's of them!" Lewa disappeared up in the foliage, with Tahu right behind him.

The two young men soon had their fill of the large "golden berries," as Lewa had dubbed them.

"So, where do you think the others are?" Tahu asked, more to himself then Lewa. The two of them were sitting in the upper branches of the tree, resting after their feast.

Lewa shrugged. "I don't know, firebrother, but I do know that we will seekfind them," he said confidently. Tahu was about to reply when he heard shouts in the forest below.

"What could that be?" he wondered aloud.

"I'll go check" Lewa darted down the tree. Tahu tried to follow, slipping a lot due to his unfamiliarity to tree climbing. His irritation grew with each slip and near fall. It's a lot easier climbing up than down, he discovered.

Below, a large group of tough looking men stood in a large wooden flat, with an older man shaking a fist at the tree.

"You'd better get down from there! I've caught ya red-handed, this time! Hooligans! Vandals! Trespassing and stealing my property!" he yelled. Lewa just stared at him in confusion. "Get out of my tree!" he bellowed.

Lewa still just watched him. Tahu, having climbed down more slowly, had just arrived at the scene. He turned to look at the group of rough guys, not noticing the branch breaking under his foot. Lewa opened his mouth to warn his brother when it snapped. Tahu landed face-first in the thick, soupy muck, trying to grab a lungful of air before going under.

"Tahu!" he heard Lewa yell as the brown liquid filled his mouth. Down, down he slowly sank, his vision blurred by the thick, unforgiving liquid. Tahu thrashed around frantically, trying to grab something. He fought down panic as the water seemed to grow dimmer. Suddenly, two strong arms grabbed him and pulled him out of the water. He gasped and coughed, hacking up a lot of the murky gunk. As Tahu lay on the deck of the wood raft, Lewa jumped onto it to help his brother.

"Gotcha!" The old man yelled. Another couple of the men grabbed Lewa and pulled his arms behind his back. The frightened Toa of Air tried to resist, but he knew it was in vain. How could he escape, with Tahu half-drowned as it was?

"Knew you'd have to come down. Now you and your hooligan friend here will face justice!" The old man said as the other men on the raft clipped metal straps over Lewa and Tahu's wrists, keeping their arms pinned behind their backs for the entire raft voyage.


	4. Chapter 4: Morning Search, Breakfast

Sorry I didn't update earlier, classes started today.

anyway, here we are, the fourth chapter. It's a double chapter, because both these sections are so ridiculously short. and I'm sorry if it seems to be moving slowly right now, but I can't just throw them in a new and unfamiliar situation and expect them to actually fight some epic battle or something. Plus there's the whole elemental energies thing, and it's way different here on earth...

(shakes head) back on subject... Disclaimer: i do not own Bionicle, or the rights of these characters. I did try do kidnap Lewa once, but that didn't really work, so I don't own anything but the OCs and the plot line.

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Pohatu woke up and watched as Gali absentmindedly poked the embers of last night's fire. He turned to see Onua awake, his green-brown eyes taking in everything as he stared contemplatively at the green leaves overhead.

"Hey brother. How do you feel?" Pohatu asked, sitting up.

"Like I ticked off Tahu," Onua replied with a grin. "But I'll survive. It's not that bad."

Gali turned and smiled at her brothers, absentmindedly pushing a lock of long brown hair out of her face. "Good, you both are awake," she said. "Did either of you see where the others went in the explosion?"

Onua shook his head.

"I saw Kopaka. He was flung towards a big body of water, probably a lake," Pohatu said.

Gali nodded. "And I saw Tahu and Lewa flung…" she looked around "…That way," she pointed. "They are probably on the other side of the lake."

"Let's go then," Onua pushed himself up to his feet, wincing slightly. As Pohatu helped Gali to her feet, Onua gingerly re-donned his armor.

"Ready?" Pohatu asked. Onua and Gali both nodded. The Toa of Stone then doused the fire, and the group set off towards the lake.

"Wake up, Takanuva, it's morning," a young voice penetrated the murky fog of sleep. Takanuva slowly opened his eyes, taking in the unfamiliar sights. He laid on a small cot, in a little, sparsely furnished room. There was a window, a small storage container, and a door to the rest of the building. All of it was vaguely familiar, as if from a dream. The Toa turned to see one of the young boys from last night standing next to his cot, grinning.

"Good morning!" he exclaimed. "Are you feeling better?"

"Uh, yeah," Takanuva replied.

"Good, cause it's almost breakfast time, and my mom is making pancakes, and she makes the best pancakes in the world, and she said that I should go see if you're up for eating and all, so, c'mon!" the boy, Timmy, grabbed Takanuva's hand and practically dragged him down the stairs. Unfamiliar with most of the terms the boy used, Takanuva couldn't help but smile at the enthusiasm with which he said it. The Toa of Light then noticed that he wasn't wearing his armor anymore.

"Hey, um, Tim, do you know where my armor is?" he asked.

"Oh, Mom said that she couldn't imagine how you would be able to sleep comfortably with all that metal armor and stuff, so she took it off of you. It's back in your room," Timmy suddenly stopped. "Do you wanna go get it?" he asked.

Takanuva thought about it for a moment. Yes, he did feel a bit unprotected without it, and it was probably foolish to wander about a strange world without his armor and weapons at least nearby. He knew any of the other Toa would have immediately gone back to get it. It wasn't smart to just trust a group of complete strangers. "That's all right, I can get it later," he heard himself saying.

"Okay!" Tim said, and pulled Takanuva the rest of the way to breakfast.


	5. Chapter 5: Heading 'Home'

And Kopaka actually kind of makes some new friends. or acquaintances, as he would probably prefer. Sorry it's up late, again, blame college. Again. Anyway, on with the show. Be sure to be careful around the end of this chapter, there's a bit of a cliff at the end (and don't worry, the cliffhangers will get much worse).

Disclaimer: Bionicle is owned by this amazing company in Denmark, called LEGO, and everyone should support them and buy their figures and sets. I only own the town in the middle of nowhere, USA, and the people living there.

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"First off, how are we going to convince Mom to let him stay?" Sam asked. He, Kopaka, and Lanie were sitting at a secluded park bench in the campground that they had been staying in. "That's assuming that she and Dad are home."

"We could tell her that he's one of your college friends, and doesn't have a place to stay over the summer," Lanie suggested.

"Yes, I can see it now. 'Hey Mom, I'm home. What, the armored guy behind me? Oh, he's just a friend from college. Could he stay at our house for the summer? What, you don't believe me? Why not? Okay, so he's got a huge sword, is wearing armor that no one has ever seen the likes of, and looks about as friendly as a grumpy bear' -no offense, Kopaka, but you do," Sam added.

Kopaka shrugged. He really could care less how friendly they thought he looked, and found all this talking tiresome. "Why don't you just tell her who I really am?" he asked, sounding a bit frustrated. He had already told them, in as few words possible, about what had happened and how he was going to have to find his other brothers and sister.

"Well, we believe you, but, I don't think anyone else would," Lanie said. "And Sam, I think that my idea could work. We just have to ask Dad first, and Kopaka would just have to find some more… well, normal clothes. And maybe try to smile once and a while," she added jokingly.

"I guess that might work. What do you say, Kopaka?" Sam turned to their stoic companion.

"I think it might work," he said.

"Good," Lanie said. "We'll just have to fine tune it a bit. Now, I was thinking…"

"Is this truly necessary?" Kopaka asked.

"Yes, now go in there and put them on," Lanie said, pointing to the men's bathroom.

Kopaka sighed and went in there. He had agreed to put his armor and weapons in Sam's vehicle (car, Lanie called it), and now had just been forced to change out of his comfortable tunic to the shorts and t-shirt that Sam had given him. When he had changed, he found that he actually liked these new clothes. They were comfortable, and felt much cooler in this hot, damp weather. Kopaka came out of the bathroom to where Lanie was waiting.

"Hey," she said "Now you look like a normal human," she grinned mischievously.

Kopaka glared irritably. The humid weather was getting on his nerves. "When do we leave?" he asked.

"Whenever Sam gets here," Lanie replied.

"Now, you are sure that your house is near the lake," Kopaka said.

"Yes, it's on the other side of the lake," Lanie said. "Don't worry, we'll find your brothers and sister."

Kopaka turned to look at the placid lake. Somewhere, the other Toa were out there. He hoped that they were safe and didn't come to harm. Yes, he had his quarrels with them, and rarely got along with them, but he still worried.

"Sam's here!" Lanie's exclamation broke through his reverie. The Toa of Ice turned to follow Lanie to the car.

"Hey, nice threads," Sam said, grinning. Lanie chuckled, but Kopaka ignored him and climbed into the back of the car. To his annoyance, it was warmer in the car than outside.

Lanie yawned. "Mind if I take a nap?" she asked. "I didn't get much sleep last night."

Sam shrugged "I don't know if I can handle such a talkative passenger if you're asleep," he said.

Kopaka, feeling a bit tired himself, ignored them and leaned his head on the window pane. In front of him Lanie drifted off to sleep, a small smile hovering on her lips. Kopaka finally fell asleep as the car pulled out of the camp ground. Had he been awake, he might have looked back and noticed three very strange figures sneaking past the camp entrance. One wore blue armor, the other brown, and the third, black…


	6. Chapter 6: Near Miss

Hey! Sorry I haven't posted this yet, the document manager was being a pooh. Don't worry, if it seems a bit slow right now, I promise it will pick up later.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bionicle at all, only the plot bunny that attacked me with this idea.

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"Pohatu, you're going to have to talk to some of the people by the lake," Gali said, leaning on a tree in the shady forest area.

"We'll stay here," Onua agreed.

Pohatu nodded and slowly approached one of the people standing by the water. It was a young man watching his wife and daughter swimming.

"Uh, hi, I was wondering if you, um, were…" Pohatu had just realized that he had not thought of what he would say.

"Yes?" the man asked.

Pohatu quickly explained that he had seen something falling from the sky last night and just wondered if the other man had seen it too.

"No, I didn't, but my wife might have," he said. "Hey, Sue, c'mere for a minute," Sue and her little daughter came up from the water, smiling.

"Did you see anything falling out of the sky last night? My friend here saw something, and was wondering if anyone else had," the man explained to his wife.

"Actually, yes," Sue said, blushing slightly. "My daughter said it was a shooting star, but…"

"It was a shooting star, Mommy!" the little girl interjected. "I made a wish on it, and it came true!"

"Oh?" Pohatu knelt down so he was on eye level with the little girl. "What did this shooting star look like?"

"Well, it was all shiny and white, and it was flying through the sky!" she said excitedly. "I thought that it looked like a person, but Mommy said…"

"Shush honey," Sue gently covered her daughter's mouth. "I'm sorry, but my daughter talks a lot," she said apologetically.

"No, that's ok, I don't mind," Pohatu said. He knelt down to look at the little girl. "Maybe it was a star person," he said.

"Yeah! I bet it was!" the little girl exclaimed.

"And maybe, that star person landed and is at this camp," Pohatu continued in a conspiratorial whisper. "And, just maybe, if someone knows where he landed, that someone can find him,"

"Maybe I can find him!" the girl replied in an equally soft whisper. "Mommy, where do you think the star landed?" she asked, and then winked emphatically at Pohatu. He chuckled.

"Probably in the lake," Sue said, "why do you ask, Mary?"

"No reason," she shrugged eyes wide in mock innocence. Her parents exchanged a bemused look as Pohatu stood up.

"Thank you, I'd better go now," he said kindly as he left. Halfway back to the woods, he felt a small tugging on his arm.

"Hey mister?" The little girl, Mary, had caught up to him and now tugged on his sleeve worriedly. "Can star people swim?" she asked. "'Cause no one is around the lake at night, and I was worried that…"

"I'm sure that star people can swim," Pohatu assured her. Mary grinned and darted back over to her parents.

"So? Did anyone see him?" Gali asked as Pohatu came into the small clearing.

He looked up at her, clearly shaken. "Can Kopaka swim?" he asked.

"Swim? I-I don't know, I've never seen…" she trailed off and looked at Pohatu, who glanced nervously out over the lake. "Do you think he…?" The question hung in the air.

"I don't know," Pohatu said, "but the little girl I talked to said that he probably landed in the lake. She also said that no one was ever around the lake during the night."

"Gali, can you swim with that leg?" Onua asked.

"Easily," she replied. "And before you ask, I was thinking the same thing." Pohatu helped her walk back to the beach he had found earlier. The dock was nearly deserted, only a few late morning fishers out now. Gali then executed a perfect dive off the end, disappearing into the water. Pohatu and Onua sat down on the end of the dock and waited, ignoring the puzzled stares directed at the two armored young men.


	7. Chapter 7: Arrested

He he, those two would get themselves arrested...

Oh, and just a quick note, to all of you who have already read my story, please don't put spoilers in your reviews. you know who you are. and the rest of you, please don't all race over to the reviews just to find out what will happen. i still have the power to change the story (MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA....)

well, enough about that. Disclaimer: I own nothing except the OC's, the town, and the plot. and a few action figures.

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Across the lake, two more young men, armor and weapons having been confiscated, sat in a jail cell at the local law-enforcement station.

"I don't understand," Tahu said to his cellmate.

"Me neither," Lewa agreed. He was hanging, upside down, from the upper of the two bunks. Tahu paced the cell impatiently. Suddenly, the door opened with a clang. The Toa both turned to see a bored looking man in a blue uniform standing at the door.

"Come with me, boys" he said. Tahu and Lewa followed him to a cluttered office, where another uniformed man, probably the man in charge, sat at a desk. The angry man that had demanded the Toa's arrest was there, too, glowering at them.

"Have a seat, boys," the man at the desk said. Tahu and Lewa sat in the plastic seats. "Now, Mr. Mortimer here claims that you were trespassing on his property. He doesn't have any proof, but a bunch of his workers claim that they saw you. Now, I want to hear your story. Where you two trespassing on his property?" he asked.

"Yes, but we didn't know it belonged to anybody," Tahu said.

"Oh?" the policeman asked.

"We're not from around here. We were travelling through and got separated from our group. My brother and I accidentally stumbled onto the swamp, and ended up spending the night in a tree. We're sorry that we trespassed, but we didn't know. It won't happen again," Tahu explained.

"A swamp, you say. Now why would there be a swamp in a normally dry area?" The policeman at the desk turned to Mr. Mortimer.

"I have a right to protect my land, Sheriff," Mr. Mortimer snapped. "I made a swamp around some of the trees, in hopes of deterring young hooligans. I guess it didn't work," he glared at Tahu and Lewa.

"He nearly drowned in the bogswamp." Lewa offered, pointing at Tahu. The Fire Toa glared at his brother.

The sheriff turned and looked at Mr. Mortimer. "Is that true?" he asked.

"It was his own fault," Mr. Mortimer snapped back.

"Sir, what you did is illegal. These boys could press charges for attempted murder if they wanted. What do you say, boys?" the sheriff asked.

"We just want to go," Tahu said, his mind turning to Gali.

"Well, you boys can go, then," the sheriff chuckled. "I'll have Steve, my deputy, go get your things, though you shouldn't go around carrying stuff like that," the man that had brought Tahu and Lewa then left the office. "You'll have to leave your names, though, in case we need to talk to you some more."

"I'm Lewa Nuva, and this is my Toa-brother, Tahu Nuva," Lewa stated.

The sheriff looked at him blankly for a moment then wrote something down. "Is this how you would spell this, Mr. Nuva?" he asked, holding the paper up for them to see.

Tahu and Lewa nodded.

"Well, here are your things," the sheriff said. Tahu and Lewa took their armor and left quickly.

"Everglad to be out of there," Lewa muttered. He turned to look at Tahu. "Why are you not wearing your Toa-armor?" he asked.

"No one here has armor like it. Did you see the way the people all stare at us?" Tahu replied.

Lewa looked around. "Maybe they've never seen Toa-heroes before," he said with a shrug, and started to walk a bit taller.

"Yes, but still…" Tahu re-adjusted the armor he was carrying. "It might be best to just blend in. Sticking out always causes trouble." he sternly glared at Lewa when he added this.

"Yeah, but we're Toa-heroes. We can handle any badtrouble that happens," Lewa muttered as he took off his armor.

"Hey, you two!" someone called. The Toa glanced back to see a rather plump man come out of a small building. "Hey, I heard what happened at the police station and how you two stood up to old man Mortimer and all. Anyway, you're out-of-towners, right? And you'll be needin' a place to stay, right?" he asked.

Tahu nodded.

"Well, I've been needin' some help in my store. Not much, just stockin' shelves and sweepin' and such. I've got an extra room in the back where you could stay. It's got just one bed, but a couch that could be used as a second one, and a table, chairs, fridge, and microwave. No TV or nothin' but, hey, whatta ya say?" he asked.

"A room? Like, a place to stay, in exchange for help in your store?" Tahu asked.

"I'll pay ya, too. Not much, but it'll be enough for you to buy food and stuff. I can throw in an employee discount, too," he added.

Lewa looked at Tahu. This was a good opportunity, a chance to have a place to stay, and food, too.

"I…My brother and I would like to see this room first," Tahu said decisively.

"Sure, sure." The man led them around the back of his store. "Just back here. Me an' the missus, we stay in the apartment above the store. We can give ya beddin' and such. Though, you'll be needin' some more, ah, some different clothes. The clothing outlet up the street has some good bargains- ah, here we are," he opened the door and flipped a switch. "Got a working bathroom and sink, too. 'Lectricity and water come with the room. Basic cable would too- me an' the missus got it a while back, if the room had a TV. So whatta ya think?" he asked.

Tahu looked around. The room had bare, whitewashed walls and cement flooring. The single window looked out on the dark alley way. A cot was shoved in the back, along with a worn couch and an old table. The two chairs didn't match each other or the table, and one of the chair legs was beginning to splinter. The small cabinets by the fridge were old, well-worn, and plastic; the microwave was very old, it was a surprise that it worked at all; the bathroom consisted of a toilet and a plastic utility sink; the room had a general run down feel.

"We'll take it," Tahu said. "When do we start work?"


	8. Chapter 8: A Possible Connection?

Ah, and back to the less... trouble prone Toa. Well, except for Takanuva, but he's got the Carpenters to keep him somewhat out of trouble. It's probably a bad idea, letting Tahu and Lewa wander around unsupervised, but they've already been in and out of jail, so what more trouble could they get into...?

Disclaimer: I really don't own Bionicle. Trust me. I tried to hold Lewa hostage once, but that failed miserably (I'm still trying to explain the hurricane originating from my house in the northwester part of the USA to the authorities...)

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"Watch out below!" Jake Carpenter yelled as he let go of the rope swing. He dropped like a stone into the water below, sending a large splash on his brothers.

"Great cannonball, Jake!" Takanuva cheered from the ledge above. He had been unofficially adopted by the Carpenter clan after they found him wandering around in the woods. Takanuva had mentioned that, if anyone was looking for him, he would do best to just stay near where they had found him. After a week, he was practically part of the family.

"Grab the rope, Tak, it's your turn," Jake called up.

"Okay, I'll, uhh…" Takanuva looked down into the pond below, where three sopping wet faces beamed up at him. He had quickly become accustomed to the Carpenter family, and quite enjoyed staying there, but still tried to impress them. As with the other Toa, he felt a need to show them that he was the bold, brave hero that he felt he should be. Now, as the boys watched, Takanuva's face already pale face drained of color as he grabbed the rope and looked down off the far too steep edge. _I CAN do this, _Takanuva thought. _I know I can. I hope_. Takanuva ran, clutching the rope and swung off the ledge. At the apex of his swing, he let go, plummeting into the water below.

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" he yelled as he hit the water with a resounding splash. The boys laughed and held up their hands to combat the waves splashing at their faces.

"That was AWESOME!" 6-year-old Timmy yelled as rivulets of water made their way down his face.

Takanuva burst up from the water, gasping for breath. His golden brown eyes were wide with shock, but a huge grin had planted itself on his face. "That was fun," he said a bit sheepishly.

"C'mon! Let's go get dinner!" Isaac said, scrambling for shore. The others were right behind him when Takanuva stopped. He thought that he had seen something glinting in the forest beyond. Something that looked an awful lot like…

"Tak! Come on, It's dinner time!" he heard Jake yell.

"Ok, I'll be there in a sec," Takanuva called over his shoulder. He looked back into the forest, but the metallic glint was gone. He turned away sadly. _It couldn't have been one of the others, anyway,_ he thought. _How would they know where to find me?_ He looked up to see Mrs. Carpenter waving him inside from the kitchen window. _At least I can stay here, for now. I hope the others are doing okay…_

"I know it was him," Pohatu said to Gali and Onua that night.

"But how do you know for sure?" Onua asked. After Gali's fruitless underwater search, the group had taken residence in the loft of an old barn near a large village on the other side of the lake. It was abandoned, with more rats and bugs than they could count, but was shelter and no one else ever entered it. Gali had made them each beds out of the hay that was lying about, and Pohatu had found some old horse blankets in a locked (and now broken into) storage shed.

"There could be lots of boys named Tak who have bright gold hair," Gali said.

"And you said that he seemed to be getting along just fine with the other people there," Onua added. "If he's safe and happy, who are we to tear him away from that?"

Pohatu sighed in frustration and took a bite of his burger. He and Onua had managed to get a job at a fast food joint in the nearby town, under the pretense of two college kids visiting relatives in the country and in need of some cash. The job made enough for them to keep well fed, but there wasn't much else they could afford. Because of her still mending leg, Pohatu and Onua insisted Gali stay in and around the barn area, though she hated it.

"We could just go and talk to him," Gali said softly. "It must be hard on him, not knowing if any of us are alive or not,"

Pohatu and Onua looked down at their food silently. They had been unable to locate the other Toa, and still didn't know where to look.

"I'm going to see if I can talk to him. Don't worry, I'll tell him not to mention us to his friends or anything, but we've got to at least tell him that we're all right. Maybe he knows where some of the others are," Pohatu said.

"Why don't you wait until tomorrow, Pohatu," Gali added quickly. "He may already be asleep or inside for the night or something,"

"Yeah, and you need sleep too, brother. I'm not going to cover for you if you fall asleep during your shift. Again," Onua said with a teasing grin.

Pohatu grinned and gathered up the wrappers. "Okay, okay, you two win. I'll wait until tomorrow after work. I should know better than to argue with you guys," he chuckled as he climbed down the ladder to take out the garbage.

Gali sighed and lay back, staring up at the sunset through a hole in the old roof.

"What's wrong?" Onua asked.

"I'm still worried about the others. I know we're doing all right, and it seems Takanuva's doing well also, but who knows what kind of trouble the others could have gotten into. It's too bad that the three most likely of our group to get themselves in trouble are the three we cannot locate," Gali said amusedly, her eyes showing her concern.

Onua just nodded in agreement.

"Hey, Gali, whatcha thinking?" Pohatu asked, climbing up the ladder.

"Oh, I'm just thinking about the other Toa." Gali shrugged and sat up.

"Especially Tahu?" Pohatu asked slyly, a small grin playing on his face.

Gali laughed softly. "Yes, especially Tahu," she admitted, a slight blush creeping onto her face.

"I'm sure they're all right, Gali," Pohatu said, sitting on the edge of the loft. "I bet Tahu's even worrying about you right now,"


	9. Chapter 9: Another Day, Another Dollar

Before the next chapter continues, I just wanted to give a shout-out to all my amazing fans. 20 reviews already, I was shocked to find out. You guys are all the best!!!!

Oh, and, if I don't post for a while, it's either due to homework or Tahu killed me because of this chapter. Just to let you guys know

Disclaimer: No Bionicles were harmed in the making of this chapter, though Tahu's pride may be a bit bruised. and I don't own Bionicle, I'm just writing about it. Because Bionicles are amazing.

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Tahu woke up and stared groggily at the whitewash wall before him. He had been having a very nice dream, and was reluctant to get up. The Toa were back on Mata Nui, playing a hide-and-seek style game. Tahu had just found Gali, in a crevice behind a water fall. He had pulled her out and helped her up, looking right into her ocean blue eyes, when his alarm went off. Alf, the store owner, had given it to them after they slept till noon on their first day of work. As Tahu sat up, he saw Lewa still in bed, pillow clamped stubbornly over his ears. As usual.

"Wake up, we have to go to work," Tahu snapped irritably. "I'm not covering for you again." When Lewa didn't move, he smacked his brother in the arm.

"All right, all right, I'm up already," Lewa groaned and sat up. His messy brown hair fell in front of his eyes as he yawned and stretched.

"You need a haircut," Tahu commented.

"Okay," Lewa mumbled, sleepily stumbling to the bathroom. Tahu rolled his eyes, pulled on a t-shirt, and got out some breakfast. A few minutes later, Lewa came out, fully dressed, hair brushed (but still messy), and a huge grin plastered on his face.

"Good Morning, Tahu!!" he yelled as he sat down for breakfast. "Aren't you excited for today?"

"Should I be?" Tahu asked grumpily. While he could get up in the morning without a problem (though not exactly in the best mood), Lewa's traditional morning switch from half asleep to super awake grated on his nerves. And Lewa knew it.

"Yes, because today, we get to sweep the floor, handle rushed delivery men, deal with everannoying customers…" Lewa cheerfully rattled off he and Tahu's many duties in the small grocery store where they worked. The owner, Alf, seemed to have a never ending list of duties for the two Toa, which left little time for them to search for their missing brothers and sister

Tahu sighed as he shoveled the last bit of cereal into his mouth and rinsed his bowl. Lewa had gulped down his own breakfast in a few bites, and was tying his blue apron over his clothes. After Tahu pulled his own on, the two boys came out of their small apartment and went about opening the store. Alf seemed eager to pawn off onto them any store duty that he didn't want to do.

Outside, Lewa propped up the awning and swept yesterdays dust off the sidewalk.

"Hi, is the store opening?" a voice behind him asked.

Lewa turned to see a pretty brown haired girl watching as he swept the porch. The Toa of Air flashed a winning smile. "If you're going to be the customer, our store is open twenty-four seven," he said.

The girl chuckled, blushing slightly. "I-I didn't know you owned the store," she said.

"Nah, I just jobwork here," Lewa replied. The teenage girl entered and began to wander the aisles, pausing here and there to look at things.

Tahu was napping in one corner of the store, leaning on a wet mop. Last night, after Lewa fell asleep, he had snuck out to search for the other Toa. He had made his way back to Mr. Mortimer's land (he didn't go through it, though) when the sun had begun to rise, cutting his journey short. He had made it back home in time to catch a few hours of rest, just enough to help him stay conscious all day. But that was about it.

"Excuse me," a quiet voice interrupted his momentary nap. Tahu started awake, took a step back and tripped over his bucket.

"Oh, I'm sorry, are you ok?" the girl asked, concerned, reaching out to help him up.

"Yeah, fine," he grumbled, irritated at himself for tripping. He ignored her hand an instead began to wipe up the soapy water with a bunch of paper towels from his apron pouch.

"Here, it's my fault too." The girl grabbed some of the paper towels and began wiping up the water. Together, they cleaned up the mess rather quickly.

"Thank you…" Tahu looked up and froze. _That long brown hair_, he thought. _Could it be…?_

The girl looked up and smiled, her brown eyes twinkling. "My name's Lanie," she said. "Elaine Landon"

Tahu smiled, hiding his disappointment. Of course it wasn't his sister. Gali would have probably recognized him anyway. "Lanie, right," he said. "What was it you wanted to ask?"

"I was wondering if you sold paper plates," she said, "the colorful kind,"

"How should I know?" Tahu retorted, still embarrassed from his earlier loss of balance.

"Would these match what you're looksearching for?" Lewa asked, vaulting over the low shelf. He handed Lanie a pack of bright green paper plates, ignoring Tahu's reprimanding glare.

"Y-yes, how did you get here so fast?" Lanie asked, laughing.

"I always get where I'm going quickfast. Especially when a pretty girl is waiting," Lewa quipped, causing Lanie to blush. A lively ring tone startled the three people.

"Oh, that's mine," Lanie said, pulling out her cell phone. "Hello? Oh, hi Ko-Cameron… No, I haven't gotten the food yet… Yes, I'm at the store now… What? Mom was…Why don't you just come down here? You can tell her that I need help … Okay, see you in a bit," Lanie hung up. "Sorry about that, my cousin Cameron is trying to avoid chores at my house," she explained a bit sheepishly. "Do you mind if I wait out front for him?"

"No, not at all," Tahu said.

Lanie smiled at both of them and left, handing the paper plates to Lewa.

"What was that all about?" Tahu asked Lewa angrily, grabbing his brother by the shoulder.

"Nothing, I was just… being friendly," Lewa snapped.

"Well, cut down on the friendliness and get to work," Tahu retorted. Lewa stormed off to re-stock another aisle, muttering under his breath.


	10. Chapter 10: Plans

Sorry for the delay, homework struck again. I should be getting into the swing of things one of these days, but don't hold me to it. Just PM me a lot to remind me to update if I'm ever slacking off again.

And, yes, Kopaka _did _make a joke. Just like when he first met Pohatu and he said "...I might need the a mountain moved. Or the island lifted." See? he does have a sense of humor :) He just doesn't use it that much

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle, or any of it's affiliated companies.

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Lanie sighed with relief as she sat down at the bus stop outside the shop. That new boy at the shop, the one with the bright green eyes, had been… a unique character, to say the least. Lanie had somewhat enjoyed the attention that he had given her, but it also made her feel a bit awkward. Also, the way that red-haired boy had been looking at her, like he knew her or something. That was weird. Lanie looked up from her musings to see a tall, pale young man coming up to her from around the corner. He had a navy blue baseball cap jammed on his head, as if to hide his long silver-white hair. He wore denim capris and an ice blue T-shirt, and looked as if he wanted to be anywhere but outside.

"Hi 'Cameron' " Lanie said, smiling.

Kopaka nodded in greeting.

"Ready to brave the store?" Lanie quipped, not at all offended by his brisk manner.

"If it is air conditioned," the Toa of Ice replied, the serious look on his face off-setting the amused twinkle in his eye.

Lanie laughed as they entered the store.

"Hey, look who's back," Lewa nudged Tahu in the shoulder.

Tahu looked up. "And look who's with her," he replied reprimandingly.

Lewa rolled his eyes. "I was just jokekidding with her," he said back, hurrying to greet her.

Tahu sighed and went back to the box he was unpacking, ignoring the nagging suspicion in the back of his mind. That boy behind Lanie, with the long white hair. Something about him seemed so familiar. He shrugged it off and continued to set boxes on the shelves.

"Hello, miss. Glad to sightsee you again," Lewa said with a small mock bow as he approached Lanie and her cousin. "And how can I help you?"

"Same as last time," Lanie replied with a smile. "And perhaps you could 'quickshow' me the party decorations, ummm, Mark?" she added, glancing at the name tag on Lewa's blue apron.

Lewa looked a bit startled when she imitated his peculiar speech, but quickly laughed. "This way," he said, setting off.

Kopaka wandered away, tired of the non-stop, energetic talk of the store boy. It reminded him of Lewa's constant chatter. Now that he thought of it, a lot about that boy, from the boundless energy, to the odd phrases, to his bright green eyes, reminded him of his brother. Could that boy be…?

"Can I help you with anything?" an unfamiliar voice asked from behind. Kopaka turned to see a young man about his age, strong and well tanned, with bright red hair and light brown eyes.

"Just looking," Kopaka replied. Both young men watched each other, as if waiting for something.

"So are you gonna help me pick out decorations or what, Kopa- er- Cameron?" Lanie called from a few aisles down.

The red-head store clerk looked at Kopaka, clearly surprised. "Your name wouldn't happen to be Kopaka, would it?" he asked cautiously.

"Why do you-" Kopaka looked hard at him. "Tahu?" he asked.

"Kopaka! I knew it was you," Tahu exclaimed, clapping his brother on the back.

Kopaka smiled. "So, I assume that the energetic young man over there is Lewa?" he asked.

Tahu nodded. "It's good to see you, too, brother. Have you met up with any of the others?"

"No, I have not-"

"Kopaka! You'll never believe this!" Lanie called. She was running toward him and Tahu, dragging Lewa by the wrist.

"The young man that was assisting your purchase is actually my brother Lewa, the Toa Nuva of Air," Kopaka said.

"Oh. So you figured it out," Lanie's shoulders drooped, but her excited smile never wavered.

Kopaka nodded. "Lanie, this is Tahu," he gestured to the Fire Toa by him.

Lanie shook his hand. "We met earlier," she said sheepishly. "I…kind of startled him, and he tripped over a bucket,"

Kopaka looked slightly amused. Lewa looked very amused.

"Didn't get much sleep," Tahu muttered defensively.

"Hey, what time do you guys get off work?" Lanie asked.

"Way too late," Lewa replied, still grinning.

"Maybe we could go to a movie or something, you know, to commemorate the meeting and all. My brother's having a party, so no one will notice if Kopaka and I slip out later. My parents usually go to bed early after them," Lanie said. "My treat," she added.

Kopaka looked at Tahu, who looked at Lewa, who grinned.

"Meet here at seven?" Tahu suggested.

"Got it," Lanie said.

Kopaka nodded.

"See you then," Lewa said to Lanie, with a flirtatious grin.


	11. Chapter 11: Secret Meeting

And more on the searching and all. Don't worry, it will pick up later on.

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle and don't make money off of this at all.

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Gali watched as Pohatu and Onua left for the morning before slowly climbing down the old ladder. She was determined to at least see Takanuva before the guys went to talk to him. It was more of a restlessness that drove her than an actual need to see her brother. The Toa of Water had stayed in the barn loft for the entire week, and now felt immediate relief to be outside in the forest. She limped over to a tree and leaned on it, breathing a bit hard. If she was going to find Takanuva's new home, she would need some sort of staff or crutch. Her broken leg really was getting bothersome. _It's a pity I still do not have my powers_, she thought.

As she glanced around, Gali noticed a large branch, tossed up against the barn. She pulled a few of the twigs off, and looked it over. It was sturdy enough, and at a good height for her. Satisfied, the Toa of Water went off toward where Pohatu had searched before, leaning heavily on her new staff.

Takanuva stepped out onto the porch of the farmhouse and stretched. He found that he enjoyed early mornings, when the bright sun rose majestically in a sky full of color, greeting the brand new day with its warmth and light. Still dressed in a borrowed pair of pajama pants and an old T-shirt, he set off toward the woods. Sunlight filtering through the trees created a dappled look, and heavy dew was still settled on everything here. The Toa of Light sighed happily as he silently made his way through the dank ferns and tangled undergrowth. The snap of a broken branch startled him, and he whirled around. There, near the small river with the rope swing, he saw a glint of what looked armor in the distance. Takanuva silently ducked behind a tree and peered out. All he could see was a distant figure, wandering through. The stranger hadn't spotted him yet, and walked oddly. Takanuva had just decided to leave when he heard a high-pitched cry of surprise and a loud splash. Without a second thought, he raced over to the river, where he and the Carpenter boys had been swimming. He stopped short when he reached the water. A young woman was calmly pulling herself out of the weak current. She had long, brown hair, and wore very familiar silver-blue armor.

"Gali?" Takanuva asked cautiously.

She looked up, startled. "Takanuva, is that you?" she asked then smiled.

"Gali! I thought I'd never see any of you again!" Takanuva exclaimed as he reached down to help her up. She accepted his outstretched hand and stood on her good foot. "Did you hurt your foot?" he asked, alarmed.

"Oh, it's all right, I injured it a while ago," Gali said. She impulsively hugged Takanuva. "It's really good to see you," she said warmly.

Takanuva grinned back. "Here, I'll help you walk. You can come have breakfast with me and the people I've met,"

"No thank you, I already ate," Gali said quickly. "Why don't we just talk out here?" She was apprehensive about anyone knowing about her or her brothers. She had quickly learned that the owner of the barn didn't want anyone in his barn (he didn't know that she, Pohatu, and Onua had adopted it as their home), and she didn't want anyone but the Toa knowing about it.

"Sure, uh, hey, have you seen any of the others?" Takanuva asked.

"Yes. Pohatu, Onua, and I are staying in an old barn, back that way," she gestured.

"Could you show me?" Takanuva asked a bit shyly.

"Sure," Gali said. The two slowly set off, Gali leaning on her brother's arm for support. Takanuva was glad that his bright blond hair was long enough to cover his ears, because he was sure that they were now neon red. They came to the old barn quickly, to Takanuva's relief.

"Pohatu and Onua have jobs in the village, well, it's actually more like a small city, the people here call it a town, and so they aren't here right now. If you come here an hour before sunset, they'll be back, and we can have a small celebratory feast," Gali said as she hobbled around to the back of the barn. Takanuva hurried to catch up, but he had been surprised at the sight of the old, dilapidated building. The wooden walls were old and warped, the roof sagged and probably had many small leaks in it, and the door hinges were rusted and broken. At the back of the barn, Gali lifted away an old, rotting board and eased her way through the small hole. Takanuva followed and paused to allow his eyes to adjust to the dim lighting. Dust flecks floated in the air. Gali slowly climbed the rickety ladder to the loft. The Toa of Light and Toa of Water looked around in silence at the dirty loft, where old, musty hay was piled into makeshift beds and covered with dirty, rough horse blankets.

"This is where you live?" Takanuva asked.

"It's not that bad," Gali replied. "How did you get to stay at that house?"

So Takanuva told her the story, how the little boys had found him in the forest, how they had immediately taken him in, how he was almost like part of their family now. He told her about kind-hearted Rose Carpenter, who kept the house neat as a pin (a phrase Takanuva had picked up during his stay with the Carpenters), about Jacob Carpenter, who worked at a bakery in town and occasionally brought home some of the leftover cakes and cookies, about Jake and his daredevil antics, about Isaac's enthusiasm and Timmy's love of books, and even of little Chris, who had just learned Takanuva's name.

"Wow," Gali said. "I'm surprised they don't find you suspicious."

Takanuva nodded. "They've hardly asked about where I came from. I think that they would like you guys."

Gali thought about it for a moment. "How about we talk to Onua and Pohatu about it, tonight?" she replied.

Takanuva nodded. "Will you be all right here? I should probably go back, but I can tell them that I've got to do something, or-"

"I'll be fine," Gali said.

Takanuva hesitated for a moment, but climbed down the ladder. He hated the thought of leaving his sister here alone, especially with an injured leg, but he didn't want his new surrogate family to worry. With a last glance up at the loft, Takanuva ducked out of the barn's side, replaced the loose board, and slipped into the sunlit forest.


	12. Chapter 12: The Movie

he he, ah, Lewa. so impatient sometimes. Oh, and quick shout out to the fact that Bionicle: The Legend Reborn came out today. Who's seen it already?

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle, only a few figures and a movie

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It was ten minutes to seven, and Alf's Grocery's was closing for the night. One customer was still perusing the aisles. Lewa sighed in frustration as the brown-haired young man casually looked from one bag to the other. _They're hot dog buns! How hard can it be to pick some?_ Lewa thought, slouching behind the cash register.

"Need help deciding?" he asked. The boy shook his head and kept looking then grabbed a bag and headed to the counter.

"Did you find everything okay?" Lewa asked him in a dull voice as he began to ring up the food.

"Oh, yeah, thanks for asking," the customer replied cheerfully. Lewa looked up at him oddly, but rang up the total.

"$24.85." he said.

The young man paid and left, glancing back more than once. Once he was out of sight, Lewa vaulted over the counter and shut the door, locking it. "Finally!" he exclaimed as he darted into the back room and flung off his apron. Tahu, who had been talking to Alf in the office, came out shortly and also took off his apron.

"Excited?" Lewa asked.

"I'm just glad that we found someone. Even if it was Kopaka," he said wryly.

Lewa laughed.

"We should probably go out front. They should be here soon," Tahu said and headed for the door to the back alley. Lewa darted to the sink and wet his hair a bit, attempting to tame his wild brown mop.

"What are you doing?" Tahu asked.

Lewa just shrugged and shook his head, showering his brother with water drops.

"Watch it!" Tahu snapped

"What, afraid of getting wet?" Lewa joked.

"No, that's you. You and Pohatu both, not me," Tahu retorted.

"Oh, that reminds me!" Lewa exclaimed. "I saw some guy in the store that looked like him,"

"Pohatu? Did you talk to him?"

"No, how weird would that be? 'Hey, thanks for shopping at Alf's Groceries. By the way, do you happen to come from an island that no one here knows about in a land that nobody around here had ever heard of and were quickshot here by some unknown force with six others? And while I'm asking everweird questions, were you ever able to run superfast or control rocks?'"

Tahu shot Lewa an irritable look, but his retort was cut off when he saw Lanie and Kopaka coming.

"Hi Lewa, Tahu!" Lanie called cheerfully. She had changed from her jeans and t-shirt to a loose, floral-print tank top and a knee-length purple skirt.

Kopaka nodded in greeting. He wore the exact same outfit as before, including the dark blue baseball capped jammed over his silver-white hair.

"Ready?" Tahu asked as they stood before the store.

Lanie nodded. "The theatres are this way," she said, pointing. The group went off, Lewa and Lanie talking animatedly the whole way.

"Wow! That was everfun!" Lewa exclaimed as they left the theatres. Lanie had suggested they see the new Spanish pirate movie, and as she was the only who had ever seen a movie, the Toa agreed.

"Did you see the part where the one pirate grabbed a rope and swung from it to the deck? That looked like something you would do, Lewa," Lanie said.

"Actually, in the jungles of Le-Wahi…" Lewa began, launching into a story. Kopaka and Tahu exchanged a glance behind their backs. Yes, that sounded a lot like something Lewa would do, especially because it was something that he had frequently done in their old homeland. Kopaka found himself wistfully thinking back to the island of Mata Nui, his old home. It had been completely leveled as part of restoring the balance to the universe and awakening the Great Spirit, and he missed it.

Lanie's laughter interrupted his reminiscing. The Toa of Ice felt a twinge of jealousy as she watched Lewa reenact the sword fight from the end of the movie. He had always gotten along with Lanie pretty well, but it had taken him a while to accept her as even an acquaintance. Now she and Lewa acted as if they had known each other for years.

"Something bugging you?" Tahu asked.

Kopaka scowled. "No."

Tahu shrugged. "I was surprised when I learned that you had made a friend. Now that I see how outgoing Lanie is, I'm not," he commented.

Kopaka ignored him. They had arrived at Alf's Groceries, and quickly said their goodbyes.

"So how'd you like the movie?" Lanie asked as she and Kopaka walked home in the waning sunlight.

Kopaka shrugged. "I see you and Lewa have hit off well," he commented instead.

"He's nice, and really funny. It's hard to see how you two could be related," she jibed with a smile.

"We're not," Kopaka said icily.

"But, he's your brother…" Lanie looked confused as she fumbled with the lock to her house.

"All Toa are brother and sister, but not in the sense that you think. Lewa and I are…more like adopted brothers," Kopaka explained.

Lanie mulled it over and nodded. "Cool," she said, "Well, I hope you liked the movie. I'm heading up to bed." She quickly mounted the stairs. "Good night!"

Kopaka entered the small den on the ground floor and sat down on the cot they had set up for him. Flicking the bedside lamp on, he pulled out a book and began to read


	13. Chapter 13: Dinner

Sorry this one's a bit short, but it just worked out that way.

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle, just the idea and the OCs

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Pohatu and Onua arrived about a half an hour late for dinner, and were surprised to find Gali right next to the entrance of the barn, leaning casually on the wall.

"What took you?" she asked, a small smile playing on her mouth.

"We had to get the celebratory feast," Pohatu held up a bulging grocery sack. "We're going to talk to Takanuva today, remember?"

"I hope you two don't mind that I saved you the trip," Gali said. The loose board shifted and out stepped a grinning Takanuva, now in an oversized plaid shirt and jeans.

"Takanuva?" Onua asked.

"Onua! Pohatu! It really is you," Takanuva said. He helped them carry in the food, and the Toa all got to work preparing the sandwiches. It wasn't a lot of food, and it wasn't very fancy, but those four Toa, swapping stories about what had happened and laughing at each other's mishaps, enjoyed that meal more than any they had ever had.

"So, you just live with the Carpenters? And they don't ask about you just showing up in the middle of the forest?" Onua asked as they cleaned up the remains of the meal.

"Yeah, they don't seem to mind me there at all, really," Takanuva shrugged. "I think Mrs. Carpenters just happy that I keep her kids occupied all day. She seems to like having people over."

"Sounds fun," Pohatu said. "Do you think she'd mind three more guests?"

"What?" Gali, Onua, and Takanuva asked in unison.

"Well, I'd feel better living somewhere where we don't have to worry about being caught for trespassing, wouldn't you?" Pohatu replied.

"Well, yes, but you were the one who said not to tell anyone about us being here," Gali said.

"Well, I saw the owner of the barn around here today, and he'll probably want to check-" A loud clank from the old barn door cut off the rest of Onua's phrase. The door creaked open and an older man entered.

"Get down," Onua whispered to the others. The four Toa silently lay flat on the loft floor, barely daring to breath.

"Now, where is that ladder?" the old man wondered aloud. Whenever any of them were in the loft, Pohatu, Onua, and Gali would always pull the old wood ladder up into the loft, ensuring protection against strangers. Pohatu now glanced warily at the ladder lying on the worn beams of the loft.

"Ah well, I'll just bring one up tomorrow, when the prospective buyers come." The old man shrugged and left the ill-lit barn.

The Toa sat up cautiously, and, when they were sure that the old man was far enough away, began to talk.

"We'd best be out of here before he comes back," Onua said.

"You could come to the Carpenters. I know they wouldn't mind at all," Takanuva said.

Pohatu looked first at Gali then Onua. They both nodded. "All right. Let's go," he said. Onua replaced the wooden ladder and the four of them slowly climbed down disappeared into the soft evening light.


	14. Chapter 14: Enter Shadows

Yes, I know, short chapter + evil cliff = angry fans. But this has to be in a chapter by itself, and I can't violate my sacred one-chapter-a-day rule, or else, while you may get lots of chapters now, you'll have to wait for me to finish writing the rest later before I can update!!

Well, now that that's out of the way...

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle, but I do own the being mentioned below. lucky me.

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The forest darkened as the sun disappeared over the horizon. A small lizard foraged around in the underbrush. He looked up when he saw a small shimmer in the air. As the creature came closer, the shimmer grew into a large portal. So absorbed as he was by the swirling colors and undulation, the lizard failed to notice a large cloud of shadow that was thrown from the portal. As the portal closed, the shadow slowly coalesced into a human. He surveyed the surrounding area disdainfully, his black, lightless eyes taking in every detail. The shadow-human stretched, and two large, leathery wings unfolded from his back. When they refolded, the man appeared to be wearing a pointed cape. The lizard watched this newcomer with suspicion, and turned to scurry away. Noticing the noise, the shadow-man reached out with his pale hand. It instantly turned back to shadow and grabbed the small reptile. The man watched the unfortunate creature squirm then go limp. He dropped the dead lizard on the ground and left, a small smile on his pale mouth.

"Those Toa will never know what hit them," the shadow man began to laugh as he disappeared into the darkness.


	15. Chapter 15: Daydreaming Dangers

Ah! Another short chapter with a cliff at the end!! Pack your parachutes! At least this one is longer than last chapter...

And this is why I'm hiding from Tahu. He is seriously going to kill me one of these days *glances over shoulder*

Disclaimer: I only own the story, a few action figures, and the OCs, not Bionicle itself. And if I die due to angry Toa coming after me, I will the finishing of this story to my sister.

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Tahu sighed irritably as he carried the large box into the storage area of the grocery store and set it down by the others. Just his luck that it was his turn to help unload the new supplies on the same day that the delivery men decided that they didn't have to actually carry the boxes inside, just leave them by the door. And of course this had to be the day after Tahu had spent all night searching for any clue to his lost brothers and sister, so he wasn't exactly fully awake.

_Well, that's the last of them_, the Toa of Fire thought as he picked up a pair of scissors to start opening the first box. As he fell into the now familiar rhythm of unpacking, his mind wandered back to last night. Nothing interesting had happened then, so Tahu really didn't have much to think about. Still, he failed to notice the unfortunate placement of his other hand as he brought the sharp scissor blade toward him through the tape.

"Ouch!" he exclaimed as the blade sliced the back of his hand. He dropped the scissors and tried to stop the bleeding with his uninjured hand. After a moment, Tahu looked at it. The cut was pretty deep, and he knew he'd probably have to get it stitched shut.

_Maybe I can keep it covered with a cloth or something, and get it taken care of later_, Tahu thought. He quickly grabbed a semi-clean rag, shook the dust off, and clamped it over his bleeding hand. _There, that should-_

"Hey Tahu, what's ta-" Lewa stopped and stared at his brother's bloody hand.

"It's not as bad as it looks," Tahu said quickly. "I'm fine, it's just a scratch,"

"Alf! Tahu cut his hand open!" Lewa darted out of the storage room. He quickly returned with the store owner in tow.

"Yep, looks like you'll have to get stitches," Alf said when he examined Tahu's hand. "What did you do?"

"Yeah, what'd you do? Try to fight a Muaka bare-handed?" Lewa quipped, getting over his momentary panic.

Tahu glared and ignored Lewa's comment. "Cut my hand opening boxes," he muttered irritably.

"Well, you'd better go to the hospital. It's close by here, so you could walk," Alf began to steer Tahu to the back door. "Lewa, keep an eye on the store,"

Lewa frowned in confusion at the odd phrase and went back to the main area of the store, frequently glancing over his shoulder at his brother.

"Now, turn left at the end of the street, head along that way for about three blocks, and turn right at the bowling alley. The hospital will be about two blocks down from there, and there's a sign out front and everything. Just tell them that you work for me," Alf instructed Tahu. The Toa of Fire nodded and set off to the hospital.

_Well, this is embarrassing_, he thought, frowning as he held the cloth tightly to his hand. _I can't open a simple cardboard box without injuring myself_. So absorbed in his self-beratement, Tahu didn't take notice of the ambulance that raced by him, nor the car that followed. If he had, all he would have seen was the blurred faces of the Carpenter family…


	16. Chapter 16: More on the Shadows

And here's where that mystery guy comes in (add dramatic music)!!! Here is another reason Tahu is going to kill me...

Tahu: you did WHAT?!?!?!?!?

TT: *hides behind Kopaka*

Kopaka: *moves out of the way*

TT: RUN AWAY!!!!!! *hides in Toa-proof bunker*

Disclaimer: Have yet to have any rights to Bionicle, but Nukra is mine. don't worry, you'll meet him later.

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That morning, Gali had snuck out of the Carpenter's house at first light. While Pohatu and Onua had just asked her to stay up in the loft, Mrs. Carpenter hardly let her get up from her bed, even though her leg was completely healed. And whenever Gali did manage to get up to do something, Takanuva would follow her like a lost puppy, opening doors for her, getting her food, and basically doing everything he could for her. While Gali was flattered that everyone cared about her well being, all the attention was getting on her nerves. She needed time by herself, to calm her mind. That was why she set off into the forest at the first rays of dawn.

The forest teemed with life, especially early in the morning. The Toa of Water just stood in a small clearing and listened, merely allowing the sounds of nature to wash over her and drive out all other thoughts. She sighed and sat amongst the dewy ferns. Breathing deeply, Gali allowed her mind to empty, a focusing technique that her mentor, Turaga Nokama, had taught her. In the midst of the peace that followed, Gali heard the sounds of someone coming towards her. Someone must have noticed her absence and come out to follow her.

_I had hoped that they would not find me missing for a while_, she thought, standing reluctantly to see who had interrupted her meditation. Gali stiffened in surprise when a tall, dark haired man stepped into the clearing. His pale face contrasted sharply with his black eyes, which, despite the morning light, seemed as dark as a moonless night.

"I apologize for intruding upon your solitude, ma'am," the stranger said in polite but cocky manner.

"It's all right, you didn't mean to," Gali said warily. Something about him seemed to make every fiber of her being want to get away as fast as possible, but the Water Toa had always prided herself in not allowing a mere bad feeling to warn her away. Still, she tensed slightly, ready to fight or run.

"Thank you," the stranger replied in his haughty manner. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Ma- Nukra…Makata," Nukra bowed formally, his black cape stiffly sticking out behind him. "May I make the pleasure of your acquaintance?"

"Oh, I am…" Gali paused, thinking fast. "Gabby Carpenter."

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Gabby. I am new in these parts and was wondering if you might show me to the main city in this area."

"There is no city near here," Gali had no idea if this was true. She just knew there was something sinister about this Nukra Makata. "I must go now, so if you will excuse me…" Gali slowly began to back away.

"Oh, you are alone?" There was a dangerous gleam in Nukra's eyes. "Let me escort you home, miss."

"No, I can make it on my own quite well," Gali said fiercely.

"I insist." Nukra grabbed her arm.

"I don't need your help." Gali wrenched her arm away and elbowed him in the gut. He began to laugh, an odd reaction for someone who had been hit in the gut.

"You have no idea how stupid that was, you pitiful human weakling," Nukra said, holding his stomach. With lightning speed, he lashed out with his foot, connecting with Gali's recently healed leg. She gasped as her leg let out an ominous snap, and she crumpled to the ground. Blood rushed out of the place where the bone now protruded from her skin.

"This is what happens when you oppose me, girl." Nukra stood over her arrogantly.

Gali looked him in the eye insolently, biting her lip to keep from crying out in pain, then grabbed a nearby stick and swung it with all her might, connecting solidly with his legs. The force of the blow sent him stumbling away, and two wings unfolded out of his dark cape to help him balance.

_Wings? Humans don't have wings_, Gali thought. Her brain felt sluggish and inactive from the pain. _But, perhaps…_

A loud crash from the forest caused both of them to turn. Taking advantage of his distraction, Gali acted totally on instinct. She took her arms and flung them out towards the winged man, as she would to call on her Toa powers. To both of their surprise, a stream of water slammed him into a tree, knocking him out.

_My powers!_ Gali realized. _Our transformation did not drain us of them, only weakened them._

She turned as something in the forest crashed again. "Gali!" she heard that someone yell.

"Takanuva!" she called, her voice strained. The pain in her leg was slowly intensifying. Gali looked over toward the unconscious form of her attacker. He was slowly dissolving into shadow and dispersing.

_He must be a Makuta_, Gali thought, _or at least the human version of one_.

"Gali!" Takanuva entered the clearing and rushed to her side. "What happened?"

"I was …attacked by… I don't know what he was… but he was not human," Gali replied steadily, ignoring the waves of pain.

"Where is he?" Takanuva asked.

"He got away," Gali replied then pushed herself into sitting position.

"Easy, Gali, I'll help you," he said, putting an arm around her for support. Slowly, he picked Gali up and carried her back to the Carpenter house.

"Gali, what happened?" Mrs. Carpenter asked, shocked.

Takanuva set Gali down on the front porch. "She was attacked in the forest," he said.

Mrs. Carpenter grabbed a few clean rags and began to gently wipe away the blood from Gali's leg. "Oh, dear, we're going to have to take you to the hospital. Jake!"

The eleven-year-old appeared in the doorway. "Yes, mom?"

"Jake, Gali broke her leg. I need you to call the hospital,"

"Ok," Jake began to leave then turned back. "Don't worry, Miss Gali, my mom is really good at fixing injuries. You'll be fine,"

Gali smiled faintly and leaned against the supporting pole. Her leg hurt more than ever now.

"Gali?" Takanuva asked.

"Tak, could you go inside and round up the other boys? I think Chris and Timmy are still asleep, and Isaac is in the den," Mrs. Carpenter requested.

Takanuva nodded and, with a nervous smile for Gali, went inside.

"The ambulance should be here soon, and they'll put your leg in a cast. It'll help it heal properly. Don't worry about the doctors or nurses, they're all very nice and will do their best to help you," Mrs. Carpenter explained softly.

Gali nodded and closed her eyes. She was beginning to feel a bit dizzy. Mrs. Carpenter finished wrapping the makeshift bandage around Gali's leg and took the Toa of Water's hand.

"Your going to be fine, Gali, don't worry," she said comfortingly

"I'm not worried," Gali said softly. "Why should I be?"

Mrs. Carpenter chuckled. "Your brothers are lucky to have someone like you as a sister," she said. The blaring of an ambulance interrupted their soft conversation. Paramedics quickly helped Gali onto a gurney and into the ambulance.

"I'll follow in the car," Mrs. Carpenter said, giving Gali's hand a gentle squeeze.

Takanuva came out, carrying two-year-old Chris, and began to help the Carpenter boys into the brown station wagon. As the paramedics began to close the door, he reached over and gently touched Gali's hand.

She smiled. "I'll be fine, Takanuva," she assured him. The paramedics then shooed him off and shut the door. The sirens started up and the ambulance drove away.

"Get in, Tak. We've gotta go!" Isaac called.

Takanuva nodded distractedly and started towards the car, frequently glancing over his shoulder at the disappearing emergency vehicle.


	17. Chapter 17: Chance Encounter

Okay, this chapter is a little longer. Thought I'd give you a little extra, since I didn't update until late last night :) he he he... sorry...

Reviews are always welcomed, loved, and given nice homes, even criticisms. I am looking to get better, so if you think of a way I can do that, speak up!! Just no flames please...

Disclaimer: I HAVE CONQUERED BIONICLE!!! ha, as if. Still have yet to own anything vaguely Bionicle related other than the stuff they sell in stores, and these ideas.

oh, and sorry if the POV shifts have been a little unclear, it's because I just figured out that doesn't save the little squiggly line that I've been using. So, I am switching to --- for POV change. Sorry about the confusion!!

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Tahu turned away from the front desk at the hospital and looked around the crowded waiting room. Most of the seats were full of worried relatives and people with minor injuries, like him. Finally, Tahu found a seat near a boy about his age and what looked like the boy's younger brothers. The Toa of Fire sat down, hoping that this wouldn't take too long.

"VRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOM!" the little toddler in the eldest boy's lap yelled, swinging a toy car through the air. In his other hand, a two-car train flew on an intercept course. "KABOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!" he yelled, throwing both vehicles into the air.

"Don't throw things, Chris," the eldest boy chastised distractedly. Chris pouted for a moment then turned his attention to Tahu, a few seats over. Tahu watched as the little boy proceeded to squirm out of his brothers arms and come over to the Fire Toa.

"Uh, hi," Tahu said as the little kid stared at him.

"Ouch" he said, pointing at Tahu's hand.

"Yeah," Tahu said. Suddenly, Chris's older brother grabbed the escaped toddler.

"I'm so sorry that he was bothering you," the boy said.

"Oh, that's all right," Tahu shrugged.

Chris squirmed in his brother's grasp. "No, Tak," the kid exclaimed. "Want down!"

"Sorry," Tak repeated and sat down again. _Tak?_ Tahu thought. _Could he be…?_

"Tahu?" a nurse asked to the busy waiting room. The Toa of Fire stood and, with a glance back followed the nurse to get his hand stitched up. He wished he had had more time to talk to that boy out there. That boy looked a lot like his brother Takanuva.

--------

Takanuva (for it indeed was him) stared after the red haired stranger as he disappeared into the back. That must have been Tahu! His brother! The Toa of Fire! A million questions flooded Takanuva's mind. What had happened to him? How was he getting food? Had he met any of the other Toa? Why was he at the hospital? Where was he staying?

"You okay, Tak?" Jake asked.

"Yeah, just, I… I think that was my brother," he said slowly, still staring at where Tahu had disappeared.

"Really? That was your brother? Cool!" Isaac exclaimed.

"He _might_ be, I don't know for sure," Takanuva replied evasively.

"You should talk to him when he comes back out, Tak," Jake said.

"Yes, and that wouldn't sound weird. 'Hi, are you really a fighter from another world who used to have the ability to manipulate and summon fire?'" Takanuva said, more disheartened then sarcastic.

"But-" Jake was cut off when Mrs. Carpenter came out, with Gali being wheeled in by a nurse.

"Gali!" Takanuva hurried over to his sister's side. "Are you all right?" he asked.

"I'm fine, don't worry," Gali chuckled, taking her crutches. Takanuva helped her rise.

"Now, we just have a few matters to talk over about paperwork and such," a lady at the front desk said.

Mrs. Carpenter turned to the front desk. "I'll only be a minute," she said.

Gali nodded. "We'll bring the boys out to the car," she replied. Takanuva began to herd the four boys towards the door, but kept glancing over his shoulder.

"What is it?" Gali asked.

"Well, I…" Takanuva looked down, searching for the right words.

"This guy, with a big cut on his hand, sat down next to us," Isaac chimed in. "And he kinda kept looking at Tak, and then the nurse came and she said 'Tahu?' and he stood up, and Tak said that that may have been his brother, and that would mean that he's also _your_ brother, and-"

"Really? You saw Tahu?" Gali asked, turning to Takanuva.

"Well, it might have-"

"Excuse me?" Gali and Takanuva turned to see a young man with reddish brown hair standing behind them, a thick gauze bandage around his left hand.

Gali glanced at Takanuva questioningly. He nodded.

"Tahu?" the Toa of Water asked.

"Gali?" he asked in response, a grin slowly spreading over his face.

"It is you!" Gali flung her arms around Tahu and hugged him tightly.

"Oh, Gali," he hugged her back.

"Hey," Takanuva said, feeling a bit awkward standing there.

"I knew it was you, Takanuva," Tahu said, clapping him on the back.

"So what happened to you?" Gali asked, gesturing to his hand.

"I should be the one asking that," Tahu replied. "Why are you here?"

"Oh, I, broke my leg," Gali shrugged.

Tahu looked at Takanuva, who shrugged and shook his head.

"What about you, brother?" the Toa of Light asked.

"It was just an accident," Tahu replied evasively.

The three of them stood together until Mrs. Carpenter finished with the paperwork.

"All right, let's- oh, hello," Mrs. Carpenter reached out to shake Tahu's hand "I'm Rose Carpenter, their aunt. What's your name?"

"Tahu," the Toa of Fire replied evenly. "They're actually my…"

"Tahu's my cousin, um, Aunt Rose," Takanuva said, "from the other side of the family. He's in town, for now."

"A pleasure to meet you, Tahu," Mrs. Carpenter replied warmly and sincerely. "I'm sorry to have to rush off like this, but we need to go. Here's our number, be sure to call. Maybe you could come over some time." She pulled out a slip of paper and wrote something on it before handing it to Tahu. The Carpenters left, but not before Gali could give Tahu's uninjured hand one last encouraging squeeze. They then drove off, leaving Tahu staring after them in silence.


	18. Chapter 18: Back Alley Encounter

Yes, the events of the last few chapters all took place on one day. 24 hours is a long time, and a lot can happen then!! Besides, the Toa are magnets for trouble, as it is...

Disclaimer: don't own Bionicle, but I do (unfortunately) own the teenagers down below. Feel free to steal any of them, except Lanie. I kinda need her to finish my story. :)

And, remember, reviews are always welcomed!!! Even criticisms, I don't mind those. As long as they are reviews, I like them!!!!

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That evening, Elaine Landon and "Cameron Nicolson" left the Landon household and headed to the aforementioned grocery store. Kopaka was leaving due to Mrs. Landon's persistent questioning, and Lanie had come along.

"I hope the guys aren't too busy. Maybe you could work there too, and have something to do all day," Lanie suggested as they took a short cut through the alley.

"Maybe" was all Kopaka said.

"Maybe I could get a job there too, if-" Lanie stopped short at the site in front of them. Four rough-looking teen guys were lounging between them and the end of the alley, making passage risky at the least.

"We'd better go around," Lanie whispered fearfully, turning back.

Kopaka kept walking.

"No, you don't want to do that," Lanie pulled on his arm insistently. She had heard tales of a gang in this part of town, and the tales were enough for her to want to avoid any contact with them in her life.

He shrugged her off and came to the group. "I need to pass. Please move aside," he stated plainly.

The guys all looked at each other and turned to Kopaka, grinning.

"So we're in your way," one sneered.

"And you think we're gonna move, just like that," another jibed.

"Maybe if you give us your girlfriend, we'll consider," a third, obviously the leader, said darkly, leering at Lanie. She took an involuntary step behind Kopaka.

"Move aside. We are merely passing through," Kopaka stated firmly.

A few more rough-looking teens stepped from a doorway, in fighting position. "This is our territory, and you gotta pay the toll to pass," the leader said.

"I merely need to pass through. Your territorial attitude is both irrational and primitive. Step aside." Kopaka glared icily at the group's leader.

"I think that's a challenge, boys," the leader said to the teens around. They chuckled ominously.

"_It_ is a command," Kopaka corrected.

"That's it…" The leader charged forward, pocket knife flicking open. Kopaka stepped aside, pulling Lanie with him. Their attacker charged right into the wall. He whirled around and threw a punch at Kopaka, who caught it and swung him around, again smashing him into the wall.

"A little help here?" the gang leader called to his cohorts. One ran forward and threw a punch at Kopaka's back. He ducked and threw the unfortunate teen into the gang leader, knocking them both out cold. Two more charged him in unison, and he evaded them, tripping one in the process. One stabbed at his arm, but he dodged and elbowed the boy in the gut. The three still standing advanced together while Kopaka calmly readied himself for the fight.

Lanie discovered something during this incident. She was not a fighter. One of the teenagers had decided to come over to her while everyone was still fighting. Lanie had tried punching him in the nose, but he ducked. She tried to kick him in the legs instead, but missed and kicked the wall, which hurt like crazy. When he grabbed her, Lanie stomped on his foot, but began to apologize profusely when he screeched expletives in pain. Suddenly, a young man with sandy brown hair punched the teen in the nose, so hard it began to bleed.

"You broke by node!" the boy exclaimed.

"I'll break a lot more if you don't get out of here," Lanie's rescuer retorted menacingly. He took a step aside to show the boy a clear path out of the alley, which the teen took as fast as possible. Lanie leaned on the wall and sighed while, behind the newcomer, Kopaka knocked out the last of the teen attackers.

"Are you okay?" the brown–eyed boy asked, placing his hand on Lanie's shoulder.

"I-" a pale hand grabbed Lanie's rescuer by the collar and pulled him back. Kopaka slammed him against the alley wall.

"Consider that a warning," Kopaka said with an icy rage.

"Warning? What are you talking about?" the young man irritably tried to pull away but couldn't.

"Kopaka, he came to help. He rescued me!" Lanie said, still a bit shaken from the battle.

"Kopaka?" the brown-haired boy asked, his resentment replaced by surprise. "Are you really-?"

Kopaka looked hard at the young man then let him go. "Pohatu?" he asked softly.

"Kopaka! You're all right!" Pohatu hugged Kopaka, grinning. "So, I see you still need me around to keep you out of trouble, eh?"

"I have noticed a lack of tectonic activity directed towards me since our separation," Kopaka replied evenly.

Pohatu laughed hard. "Man, brother, are you still going on about that? I thought we put that behind us."

Kopaka shrugged. "It is good to see you again, brother," he said.

"So, who's your friend?" Pohatu asked, turning to where Lanie stood.

"I'm L-Lanie, Elaine Landon" she said, shaking Pohatu's hand shyly. "Kopaka's been staying with my family."

Pohatu nodded. "I'm Pohatu, Kopaka's brother. By the way, do you know the Carpenters?"

"I used to baby sit for them, yes. Why?"

"Great!" Pohatu turned to Kopaka, "Takanuva, Gali, Onua, and I are staying with them, at least, they offered to let us stay at their house."

"Then we have all found each other," Kopaka said. "Tahu and Lewa have found work and lodgings at the grocery store up the street."

"W-we're heading up there, and they'll probably be glad to see you. Do you want to come with us?" Lanie asked, a bit hesitantly.

"I'd love to, but I've got to go back to the Carpenters. They'll worry if I'm home late," Pohatu replied, turning down the alley. "Come up to the Carpenters' on Saturday, and bring Tahu and Lewa," he called over his shoulder.

"Okay!" Lanie called back. She turned to Kopaka. "C'mon, we'd better get going, before any of them wake up." She nodded towards the unconscious teenagers in the alley way. Kopaka glanced briefly at them then continued on his way to the grocery store, with Lanie following close behind.


	19. Chapter 19: Surprise Attack

Aaaaaaand here's another cliff. Just warning you. I think I'll change my name and move sometime. The Toa are going to be really ticked after this...

And just a quick note, the store didn't just spontaneously burst into flames. There is a reason for it, I promise. You just have to wait until the next chapter to find out. *runs and hides from angry fans*

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle, and don't make money off of this.

Please review!! Even a small what you thought review is welcomed!!! And thanks to Athena's Assassin for reviewing nearly every chapter.

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"Lewa? Tahu?" Lanie called as the two of them entered the shop.

"Hey Lanie!" Lewa called cheerfully as he vaulted over the counter. "Kopaka," he added with a grin.

Kopaka nodded in acknowledgement.

"Where's Tahu?" Lanie asked.

"Right here," Tahu said, coming out from the back.

"What happened to your hand?" Lanie asked curiously.

"It's just a scratch," the Fire Toa muttered irritably. "I saw Gali and Takanuva today. They're staying with woman named 'Mrs. Carpenter'. Do you know her?" he quickly asked, changing the subject.

"Oh, we saw Pohatu on the way here, didn't we, Kopaka?" Lanie exclaimed.

Kopaka nodded. "He, too, is staying with the Carpenter family, along with Onua."

"That means we found everyone!" Lewa exclaimed.

"You should all get together at the Carpenters. Pohatu invited us to visit, and I know the Carpenters won't mind. They love having company," Lanie said excitedly.

"I have their phone number, we can…" Tahu trailed off, turning to the back offices warily. "Something isn't right. I smell something… odd."

"I don't smell anything," Lewa said, sniffing curiously. "Could just be you," he quipped. Lanie sniffed as well, and shook her head.

"If Tahu does, then something is amiss. We should investigate before-" Kopaka was cut off by a loud pop, and the sudden crackle of flames. A wall of fire had suddenly erupted from the front of the store, completely enveloping the front door and the front display windows.

"This way!" Tahu yelled, running for the back. Another pop and a wall of flames blocked the delivery port.

"What's going on?" Lanie asked, coughing from the smoke. The black clouds of it were rapidly filling the room as if trying to choke out the three Toa and teenage girl.

"I'm not sure. There's another exit over this way," Tahu replied, leading the group away from the crackling flames.

"Wait! Alf!" Lewa exclaimed. He turned and nimbly darted around the counter.

"Lewa, wait!" Kopaka called, his cry turning into a loud cough. While Tahu didn't seem affected at all by the thick, acrid smoke, both Lanie and Kopaka were nearly choking. Lanie was barely able to stand as the smoke invaded her lungs.

"C'mon, he'll be fine. You two _have_ to get out of here," Tahu said. Kopaka scowled but said nothing. Lanie nodded as she retched harder, nearly crippled by the acidic smoke.

"Probably…all the plastics…burning…" Kopaka muttered between coughs, following Tahu closely. Lanie nodded again, swaying on her feet.

The ceiling creaked and began to collapse on top of the small group.

"Look out!" Kopaka yelled, shoving Lanie out of the way. Lanie tumbled forward, collapsing in a fit of coughs.

"Get her… out of here…right behind…" Kopaka commanded, obscured by the billowing smoke.

"Stay close," Tahu replied, hoisting the semi-conscious girl onto his shoulders. He made his way out of the store and onto the street. Kopaka was nowhere to be found.

"Idiot," Tahu muttered. He laid Lanie down a safe distance away, ordered one of the spectators to keep an eye on her, and plunged back into the flames.

On Mata Nui, Tahu had been completely impervious to heat and flame. Here, while he fared much better than anyone else, he could feel the intensity of the heat, and it hurt. Avoiding the hotter spots, he instinctually attempted to draw the heat from the flames, an old exercise he could do in his sleep back home. It worked for a while, until a large, painful burn began to develop on his arm.

"Ahhh!" he cried out. He released the heat and instantly incinerated a half gone shelf. _So_ _I do have my powers, they're just diminished_, he thought grimly, wincing.

"Tahu?" a very faint voice came from behind him. Tahu whirled around and saw the door to the back office sagging ajar on its hinges. He shoved it open and saw Kopaka, his face a mask of pain, trying to support himself with the charred desk. One leg was covered in a large burn, and his face was drenched in sweat.

"C'mon, I'm getting you out of here," Tahu said, putting Kopaka's arm over his shoulder. Kopaka just nodded, barely awake enough to stand. _The smoke must be getting to us both_, Tahu thought. His mind felt sluggish and his vision blurred. He half-dragged Kopaka out of the door and toward the back alley. The wall had fallen away, and there were still puddles from last night's rain shower, which would provide at least some relief from the intense heat. Once in the alley, Tahu collapsed onto the cement, drained. Kopaka was unconscious by then, and Tahu wondered how long before he would be out. The last thing he heard was the drone of sirens, and soft, measured footsteps as a tall, dark-haired man walked up, watching him with an indifferent disdain.


	20. Chapter 20: Questioning

And you thought the last cliff was bad.... :)

Disclaimer: Bionicle belongs to lego, Nukra (unfortunately) belongs to me.

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Kopaka gasped as the icy cold water hit him full in the face, shocking him awake.

"I thought you ice types liked the cold," came a contemptuous voice from behind Kopaka. The Toa of Ice forced himself up and looked around. He was lying on the floor of a large, dank cavern, made of packed dirt. Next to him crouched a pale, dark-haired figure, holding a dripping, empty bowl.

"Good morning, Toa," the figure said, voice dripping in sarcasm. "I hope you slept well."

Kopaka ignored him and tried to push himself up further. His arms gave up halfway and he collapsed back onto the floor, muttering a curse under his breath.

"Now, I need some information that I believe you have in your possession and, after the 'accident' I caused in the store, you and your two brothers shouldn't be too inclined not to divulge it," The dark-clothed figure said, ignoring Kopaka's mild oath. "So, tell me, where are the other Toa?" He turned to stare scathingly at Kopaka.

_So he caused the fire_, Kopaka thought coolly. He returned his captor's stare with his own signature glare. The latter glowered and, growing more irritated, lashed out, his foot connecting solidly with Kopaka's ribs. The Ice Toa grunted in pain.

"I said, tell me where the others are, Toa!" the tall figure snapped, hauling Kopaka to his feet. When he let go of Kopaka, the Toa of Ice collapsed against the cavern wall, his burned leg unable to support his weight. He leaned there, bracing himself.

"Pathetic weakling," the figure muttered with a few harsh expletives, watching Kopaka with a hate-filled glare. "Where are they, Toa? My patience is wearing thin."

Kopaka ignored him and did his best to look bored.

"I'm going to ask you one more time, Toa," Kopaka's captor glowered, speaking slowly. "Where are the others?"

Kopaka turned his head and looked up at the tall, pale figure. "Why should I tell you?" he asked in a hoarse whisper. His throat still burned from the smoke he had inhaled. The dark cloaked man glared at Kopaka furiously then struck him in the face, leaving angry red welts where his nails scratched Kopaka's skin. The Toa of Ice crumpled on the ground, and his captor kicked him hard in the ribs. Both heard a sinister crack and Kopaka's face screwed up in pain. The dark-haired figure standing ominously over him began to laugh evilly when Kopaka glared up in silent boldness.

"You think that this is all I can do to you, don't you?" he laughed. "Oh, no, you are quite mistaken. You see," he paused dramatically. "I am a Makuta, Nukra to be exact."

Kopaka masked his surprise. _A Makuta! Here! That would explain how he knew that I am a Toa, and how he knew the others are here_, the Ice Toa thought.

"Yes, you seven were not the only ones to be sent to this wretched world, oh no. And, unfortunately for you, I still have my powers, unlike you weaklings,"

Kopaka narrowed his eyes, bracing for what he knew would come next.

"See, I can still do this!" the Makuta thrust his arms into the air. Electricity crackled and bolts of lightning raced across the ceiling and around his outstretched arms. With a single move, the Makuta flung the lightning at Kopaka, who bit back a cry of pain in his throat.

"And I can do this." The Makuta was now grinning evilly as a loud hum filled the room. The hum grew in intensity and nearly threatened to shake Kopaka apart. He clasped his hands around his ears, curling up defensively.

The Makuta knelt down beside Kopaka's bruised and battered form and grabbed his arms, pulling them behind the Toa of Ice. Kopaka had no strength left with which to fight as the Makuta strapped them painfully together with a thick metal bands.

"Sleep well, Toa," The Makuta said sarcastically. A single blow to the head and Kopaka was out cold.


	21. Chapter 21: The Rescue

Pohatu: As the author of this story is currently in hiding, we thought we should do the introduction for her

Tahu: *grumbles* I still think we should hunt her down...

Gali: Anyway *stern glare at Tahu* as we've never done an introduction, we don't really know what to do, so if we forget anything, please tell us.

Lewa: And don't forget to tellreview your thoughts on us everhandsome Toaheroes!

Pohatu: You sound like Turaga Matau.

Lewa: And what's badwrong with that?

Onua: Anyway, TigerToa did leave a note. We'll put it up below.

Kopaka: Hope you enjoy our pain, I mean, the chapter

* * *

_Hey, loyal readers! As you can tell, I'm currently in the Author Protection Program, which my friend Mikell introduced me to. I'm hiding from the Toa, as you've probably guessed, so they may be doing some of the introductions. Hope you don't mind! I will be able to post the chapters from here, though, so don't worry about that! And, as always _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Bionicle, and all that. You know the drill. Enjoy!!_

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_

"Hey, Icebrother, you all right?" Kopaka groaned as he awoke. The first thing he saw was Lewa's face staring down at him. "Good to see you openeyed, brother. You were outcold for an everlong time."

Kopaka tried to sit up, but didn't have the strength. "Where…?" he began to ask, but his whisper turned into a harsh cough.

"I don't know, Kopaka," Lewa said with a shrug. Kopaka turned to get a good look at his brother. Lewa was shackled to the wall by a sturdy, dark chain, long enough for him to sit up and move around a bit, but too short to even stand. Thick dark smudges covered his face and darkened his hair; Kopaka couldn't tell if it was dirt or soot from the fire. The beginnings of a black eye were visible, and his arm was red and bloody, and beginning to bruise.

"What happened?" Kopaka asked softly, using the wall to push himself into a sitting position.

"Oh, just bruisedcut it trying to smash through the back door at the store," Lewa shrugged and winced. "Have you spotseen Tahu?"

Kopaka gingerly shook his head. The room was surprisingly dry, and made of stone blocks instead of the hard packed dirt of the other room. A single light bulb lit the room with its harsh pallor, and a wooden door showed the only way in and out of the stone cell.

Lewa sighed and leaned dejectedly against the wall. His chain clanked, and he glared angrily at it. The door creaked and both Toa turned to see their Makuta captor throw an unconscious Tahu into the cell.

"I'll be back in an hour. You had best have an answer for me or one of you may not be around much longer," the Makuta said over his shoulder as he shut and locked the door.

"Tahu?" Lewa moved toward the Toa of Fire, only to find that his shackle didn't reach far enough. "Can you hear me, Toabrother?" he asked more intensely.

"How long was I out?" Kopaka asked softly.

Lewa shrugged. "Hard to seetell the timepassage here," he replied. "Half an hour, maybe."

Kopaka turned to look at the still Toa of Fire. "Perhaps it is best if he rests as much as he can. We should not try to wake him."

Lewa began to say something in protest, but a harsh, grating noise interrupted him. One of the stones along the wall began to move out into the cell, and an oddly familiar, dirt-smudged face appeared from behind it.

"Pohatu?" Lewa asked.

"Onua! We found them, they're here!" Pohatu called behind him before extracting himself from the tunnel. A dark figure with short black hair stood and stretched.

"What happened to you guys?" Pohatu knelt beside Tahu's still form and felt for a pulse.

"We were captured by a Makuta, what did you expect?" Kopaka muttered icily. His throat still stung when he talked, but seemed to be healing some.

"A Makuta?" Onua exclaimed, helping Lewa to his feet after he had broken the chain. "So we weren't the only ones to come here."

Pohatu was already back at the tunnel mouth, the unconscious Fire Toa in his arms. "Hey, Takanuva finally made it down, Onua," he said in passing. A tan, golden haired boy crawled out of the tunnel, moving aside to allow Pohatu and Tahu to leave.

"Do you want me to take Lewa?" he asked.

Onua nodded and broke the chain that bound his brother to the wall, and the Toa of Air and Toa of Light soon disappeared into the tunnel. The Toa of Earth turned to see Kopaka collapse alongside the wall in a heap, glowering at the offending stone. He had tried to stand, using the wall as a brace, but his leg had given way under his weight, a painful reminder of what had happened earlier.

"Are you all right, brother?" Onua asked as he helped Kopaka to his feet and snapped the handcuffs with a quick tug.

"Fine," Kopaka grunted. The Toa of Earth didn't press the issue, but helped his icy brother to the escape tunnel.

"Will you manage all right?" Onua asked. Kopaka nodded and, with a grunt of pain, lowered himself into the hole. Onua followed shortly, closing the tunnel entrance and hiding all signs of their escape.

-----

The tunnel was long and dank, and even the weary Toa of Air could see that it wasn't made to last for long. The dark, moist earth rubbed off on his already filthy clothes. He and Takanuva were making slow progress up the winding escape, due to the fact that Lewa was unable to go any faster than an agonizingly slow scoot. Finally, too the Air Toa's embarrassment, he collapsed, incapable of any more movement. Takanuva reached back, grabbed the drained Toa, and half-dragged him the rest of the way up the tunnel.

"We're almost there," the Toa of Light said at one point. Lewa looked up hopefully only to get a shower of dirt in his face.

"Watch where you're throwflinging that stuff," he muttered, spitting dirt.

"Sorry," Takanuva said quickly. The two Toa suddenly felt a small breeze, and Takanuva reached forward, grabbing the edge of the tunnel. Two strong, lithe arms reached forward and helped pull the Toa out onto the soft grass.

"Onua's… right … behind," Takanuva said, pushing himself up from the ground. Lewa just laid there, too tired to do anything but enjoy the feeling of the warm grass beneath him, the gentle breeze tousling his sooty, dirt-encrusted hair, the sun washing away the feel of the cold cell.

"You'll need to move," a gentle hand rolled him over and helped him sit up. A beautiful young woman with long brown hair helped lean him against a tree and began to wipe the dirt off his face.

"G-Gali?" he asked, too exhausted to be surprised at his sister's appearance.

"Shhhh, you need rest," Gali said sternly. The fond look in her blue eyes contradicted her firm chastisement, and Lewa grinned.

"Good to… greetsee you too…sister," he said, closing his eyes. The warmth of the sunlight, his own weariness, and the Toa of Water's comforting presence lulled the battered Toa of Air to sleep.


	22. Chapter 22: Long Day

_Hello, readers!!_

_I'm still staying with the Author Protection Program, so I'm sorry this is a little late in the day. Maybe if you send more reviews, I'll get the chapters out on time... *evil grin*. I'm just kidding, but please review. It's the only reason I know that continuing posting this and risking my life and all. lol, and thanks to all of you who continue to review. You are the highlight of my day. :)_

_TT_

Onua: So Tiger's thinking of discontinuing because of lack of reviews?

Tahu: No! She can't! She has so much more written out, she has to paste it! I CAN'T JUST BE STUCK IN THAT HOSPITAL FOREVER!!!!

Kopaka: She was joking, you know.

Onua: *chuckles* I caught that, but I couldn't resist.

Pohatu: Um, shouldn't we get on with the story? I think some of the readers might be tired of us talking.

Lewa: Okay, on with the show!!

Onua: and as TigerToa forgot to give us a disclaimer to post, we decided to nab one from a previous chapter

Disclaimer: I do not own Bionicle in any way, shape, or form, only a few Bionicle figures, which don't really count, and I'm not making any money whatsoever on this fan fiction.

Pohatu: See if you can figure out which chapter this one's from!!

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"They will be all right, won't they?" Takanuva asked for what seemed like the hundredth time. He and Pohatu had been sitting outside the door to the room where Mrs. Carpenter and Gali tended to the three injured Toa.

"Of course," Pohatu assured his brother. "Kopaka, Tahu, and Lewa are all too stubborn to let something like injuries or mortal perils stop them." The Toa of Stone almost immediately regretted his statement when he saw the look of worry on Takanuva's face. "I'm sure their injuries just look worse than they really are," he amended.

The door to the makeshift clinic opened, and the two Toa quickly stood.

"How are they?" Pohatu inquired, trying not to let his anxiety carry through his voice.

Mrs. Carpenter sighed wearily, leaning against the door. "We'll need to take them to the hospital. I can't care for these wounds myself, and they need medical treatment," She looked up at the two alarmed Toa. "I'll need you to help carry them to my car. They're still asleep."

Pohatu nodded solemnly and entered the dark room. When word of the fire had first reached them, Pohatu and Onua, under Gali's direction, had brought two more beds down from the Carpenters' attic and set them up in the guest room. Kopaka, Tahu, and Lewa now lay on the three beds, all silent and pale in the darkened room. Pohatu lifted the Toa of Ice and carried him out, motioning for Takanuva to do the same. In somber silence, the two Toa brought their unconscious brothers out to Mrs. Carpenter's station wagon. Once they were safely in the car, Mrs. Carpenter got in and drove away, leaving the two Toa to watch helplessly after the fading vehicle.

-----

"Mrs. Carpenter already told me" was all Gali said when Pohatu and Takanuva came up to the large attic room the Toa now occupied. Onua had had an unfortunate encounter with the Makuta while helping with the escape. Though his injuries were far less grievous than his brothers, the Makuta had torn the muscle of one arm, which now lay limply beside him.

The Toa of Earth gritted his teeth as Gali wiped the blood off his arm and wrapped a bandage around it.

"You'll be fine, don't worry. I'm just making sure the muscle grows together properly," Gali assured him, noticing his grimace.

Onua endured it in patient silence, but offered Gali an encouraging smile.

"I just hope we can go visit them soon," Takanuva said glumly, sitting on the edge of the bed. "It's not right that the moment we all are together again, something pulls us apart."

"You're thinking about the Voya Nui mission, aren't you?" Gali asked.

The Toa of Light nodded. Back on their homeland of Metru Nui, Takanuva had been the only one who didn't go to Voya Nui to help in the recovery of the Mask of Life. All of the Toa Nuva had protested at the Turaga's decision for Takanuva to stay behind, but Takanuva had felt worst of all, especially when he heard about the death of Toa Matoro.

"Takanuva, Gali, why don't you two go get some lunch? I can stay here and keep Onua company" Pohatu said. The two Toa nodded and headed down as Pohatu took a seat beside Onua's bed.

"So, how are you doing?" Takanuva asked as they got to the main floor. Gali's leg had healed very rapidly since the hospital trip, and she now walked with only a slight limp.

"Fine, thanks," she replied with a smile. "And you?"

Takanuva shrugged. "I'm fine, but…" he looked away, slightly embarrassed.

"I understand," Gali replied.

The Toa of Light smiled thankfully as they entered the kitchen. "Hey, they left us something," he said, noting the plates that had been laid out on the counter.

Gali saw them too, and picked up two of the plates. "I'll bring these up to Pohatu and Onua," she said.

"No, I'll do that," Takanuva quickly grabbed the plates from her hands and darted over to the stairs. "Be right back," he called over his shoulder.

Gali rolled her eyes and took her own plate to the back porch. In the waning sunlight, the four Carpenter boys were running around in the back woods. She sat down on the edge of the porch to watch them. A few moments later, Takanuva joined her.

"Do you mind if I…?"

"No, of course not," Gali replied, smiling. Takanuva sat down, and they ate in a comfortable silence. The sound of tires on the gravel path to the house seemed to call the Carpenter boys to the front, for they flew over to greet the coming car.

"That's probably Mrs. Carpenter," Takanuva said, standing. They followed the boys to see Mrs. Carpenter talking with them as she got out of the old brown station wagon.

"Oh, hello you two," she said when she saw them. "Tak, could you bring the boys inside?" A chorus of complaints greeted her suggestion, but Takanuva nodded and herded the four boys to the door.

"Your friends are in the hospital and getting care, but the doctors are asking a lot of questions. I tried to evade as many as I could, but I don't think they believed me," Mrs Carpenter reported worriedly as she and Gali went inside. "The hospital will want to get them out of there as soon as possible, so they may be home in as few as a day or two,"

"Why would the hospital send them home so soon?" Gali asked. "Shouldn't the hospital want to keep them there until they have recovered fully?"

"I'm sure the doctors will want to keep them there longer, but the hospitals don't have the resources to have people stay for a long time," Mrs. Carpenter explained.

"But isn't people's health more important than money?" Gali looked slightly irritated at the news.

Mrs. Carpenter chuckled pleasantly. "I wish more people thought like you, Gali. And don't worry, I'll bring you and your cousins over to visit them tomorrow. You'd best go find something to do. It's going to be a long day."

Gali nodded and headed up to her small bedroom on the second floor, where two empty cots echoed the absence of her brothers. Though it was not night, she lay down on her bed and closed her eyes, hoping sleep would come. A half an hour later, she got up and went to her window. The sun was still high in the sky, noting that little time had passed. Gali sighed and sat back down on her bed, fiddling with a piece of cloth from Tahu's shirt. They had needed to cut it off of him to make sure that his chest wasn't bleeding too badly, and Gali had kept a small, relatively clean scrap of it. Now its rough texture comforted her as she watched the second hand on the small alarm clock move around the clock face. She sighed as the thin clock hand moved with infinitesimal slowness. It would be a long day.


	23. Chapter 23: Hospital Visit

Tahu: I'm gonna kill her...

Gali: Now, Tahu, be thankful that you're alive. Some authors have killed you, you know.

Tahu: yeah, whatever... *incinerates nearby object*

Gali: Tahu!

Pohatu: Anyway, as no one really guessed where the disclaimer was from (hint: check chapter 2), so we chose to try a hand at writing our own, and see what Tiger thinks. So, here's the first try. It's probably not hard to guess who wrote this.

Disclaimer: TigerToa doesn't claimown any Bionicles, but she heartloves us Toaheroes, and so writes about us! So don't sue her!

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Tahu awoke in a haze of pain. His arm throbbed, his head pounded, and his stomach felt like it had been strapped to an angry Kane Ra bull for an hour. He opened his eyes slowly to see someone drew open the heavy curtains in his room. Sunlight flooded in, and he squinted to see who his visitor was.

"Oh, you're awake," A beautiful young woman with long brown hair and bright ocean-blue eyes turned and sat in a chair beside his bed. She smiled a wide, comforting smile and placed a graceful, tan hand on his. "I was about to ask the nurse if you were in a coma."

"Gali?" Tahu asked. He still felt a bit blurred from sleep, but he was sure that was his sister.

"Yes, it's me, Tahu," Gali replied. "Everyone's together now, and we're all safe."

Tahu smiled faintly. For some reason, he began to feel more tired than when he awoke, and found concentrating on anything difficult.

"Are you all right, Tahu?" Gali asked suddenly.

"Yeah…" Tahu said, frowning in confusion. "Just, tired, I think."

Gali shrugged. "It is good to see you, though," she said, changing the subject. "How do you feel?"

"Fine," Tahu snapped as he began to sit up, immediately regretting his harsh tone. The sudden change in position caused his head to throb harder, and he moaned.

"Tahu, stop," Gali said, placing a hand on his shoulder. He laid back down under silent protest, but allowed himself a small sigh of relief as his insides stopped twisting in a nauseating dance. At that moment, a nurse came in.

"Oh, hello, ma'am," the woman said when she saw Gali. "I'm Stephanie, Tahu's nurse," she held out a hand to the Toa of Water, who shook it.

"I'm Gabby, his cousin," she said, taking the name she had registered under during her earlier hospital visit.

"Pleasure to meet you, Gabby," Stephanie said. "I need to check a few medications, and I have a few questions for you. Could I talk to you out in the hall in a minute?"

Gali nodded and left the room, giving Tahu an encouraging smile before leaving. Stephanie joined her a few seconds later, after checking a few things on the machines in the room. _Why did I have to end up in the hospital again?_ Tahu thought irritatedly, staring at the ceiling_. At least last time I only needed a few stitches on my hand. This time, well…_ He glanced down at his chest, feeling something pulling at the skin on his stomach. He pulled up the neck of his hospital gown and stared at the line of black thread bits across his stomach. _Ouch._

----

In the hallway, Stephanie pulled out some papers and talked about financial coverage and insurance, something the Toa of Water would have found very confusing. Gali wasn't listening. Her mind was reliving the moment she saw her brothers coming up from that tunnel, so broken and worn. Seeing Tahu so drained had brought back those and more memories, from their homeland.

"Um, Miss Gabby?" Gali shook her head and looked up to see the nurse watching her curiously. "Are you all right? You looked a bit troubled."

"I'm fine. Just worried about my cousins," she replied quickly.

"Cousins?" Stephanie inquired.

Gali smiled ruefully. "Tahu's not the only one of my family who's in the hospital right now," she explained.

"Oh, so they are related!" Stephanie exclaimed, jotting something down. "That was actually one of my questions, if you knew the two others who were brought in with Tahu. I'm guessing the answer is yes. So, are they all brothers?" she asked, looking up.

Gali paused for a moment. "Yes."

"And the other's names are…" Stephanie flipped through a few papers. "Cameron and… Lewa?"

Gali nodded. "May I see them?" she asked.

"Of course," Stephanie smiled. "I'll show you to their rooms,"

"I have to tell Tahu goodbye," Gali said, ducking into the adjacent hospital room. "Hey Tahu?" she asked. The room was dark again, but she could see that Tahu was sitting up now.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I'm going to go check on the others, and make sure they're okay," she said, sitting on the edge of his bed.

"All right," Tahu reached up and took her hand. "Be sure to come back as soon as you can," he grinned wryly. "It's incredibly boring in here. I might have to incinerate something,"

Gali laughed, a bright, musical sound. It was good that her brother hadn't lost his sense of humor. "I'll hurry back," she promised, smiling. Tahu squeezed her hand gently and let go, and she left to see her other injured brothers.


	24. Chapter 24: The Visit, Part 2

And here's chapter 24!! I managed to distract the Toa and grab my laptop back, so they won't be adding anymore of their own little blurbs (unless, of course, they find me again). The ending of this chapter is mostly the author's attempt to prevent Tahu from killing her, so be ye warned!

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle, and wouldn't mind working for them someday (hint, hint, any Lego recruiters! :)

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The first room Stephanie and Gali came to was dark. In the bed, a sleeping young man laid silently, one arm wrapped in a thick white bandage from shoulder to wrist.

"It's odd to see him so still," Gali said, brushing a lock of hair from Lewa's calm face. "I've never seen him stay in one place for more than a few seconds," she added as she and the nurse left.

"Cameron's room is right over there." Stephanie pointed to a room up ahead. "I have to fill out some paperwork, but you can go in yourself."

Gali nodded, and Stephanie left. The Toa of Water approached the well-lit room and stopped in the doorway. Someone had pulled back the window shades to let the morning sunlight in. The overhead light was off, and a teenage girl in lavender pajamas sat in a chair beside the bed. In it, a young man with long white hair was talking softly with the girl. He stopped when he saw Gali come in, and the girl turned. She had brown hair pulled into a ponytail, and inquisitive brown eyes. While Kopaka watched Gali with guarded curiosity, the girl stood with a smile to greet Gali.

"Hi, I'm Lanie," she said, holding out her hand. "Elaine Landon. I'm staying here at the hospital, too, because I inhaled a lot of smoke in a fire, and came in here to keep Ko- er- Cameron company."

"I'm… Gali," the Toa of Water said. Obviously this girl knew who Kopaka truly was, her slip-up with his false name proved that, and beside that, she seemed open and honest. "I'm his sister."

"Oh, you're Gali!" Lanie exclaimed in excitement.

"Hello, sister," Kopaka said softly from his bed. He sat up a bit more and watched her, his earlier guarded expression gone. "How are you?"

"I think I should be the one to ask that, but I'm fine," Gali said with a smile as she sat on the edge of his bed. Lanie resumed her seat, but stood suddenly.

"Would you like me to give you some privacy? I bet you have a lot of family stuff to talk about," she said quickly.

Gali glanced at Kopaka, who shrugged and winced slightly. His face was slightly bruised, and he looked drained, but much better than he had when she and the other Toa had first rescued him.

"I don't mind if you stay," Gali said. Lanie sat back down with a grateful smile. "So, how do you know Kopaka, anyway? I highly doubt he just went up to you and introduced himself,"

Lanie laughed and launched into the story of how she had found Kopaka while camping with her brother and his friends. Kopaka said little, only interjecting when necessary, as Lanie told about meeting up with Tahu and Lewa, the back alley fight where they met Pohatu, and finally the fire that ended up sending Lanie to the hospital.

"I believe that the fire was no accident," Kopaka said once Lanie was done.

"The Makuta?" Gali asked. She had been wondering that as well.

Kopaka nodded.

"The one who captured you guys?" Lanie asked in reference to Gali's question. The Toa of Water nodded. "I saw him, I think, after the fire. I woke up as the paramedics were loading me into the ambulance, and I saw this really tall guy, with the creepiest black eyes, staring at me. He seemed almost furious that I was alive. Then one of the paramedics gave me something, and I woke up in my hospital room."

"Was he wearing a long cape?" Gali inquired.

"Yes, how did you…?" Lanie started to ask.

"I met him before," she said, and thus told Kopaka and Lanie about her chance meeting with the Makuta in the woods, and how she met Tahu at the hospital. As she finished, a nurse came in and informed Lanie that her parents were waiting in her room to see her, so the young girl left. Gali left too. She could see that Kopaka could barely keep his eyes open, but knew he would never admit his own weariness. With a quick check to make sure Lewa was still sleeping soundly, Gali headed back to Tahu's room. He was asleep too, but Gali sat in the chair by his bed anyway. She had agreed to meet Mrs. Carpenter here, and it felt good to be with her brother again. As she had been up since sunrise that morning, and had woken frequently that night, Gali felt tired herself. She laid her head on the side of Tahu's bed, intending only to rest for a moment.

Gali awoke to find Tahu watching her sleep, a contented smile on his face. The smile disappeared when she sat up and looked at him.

"How long was I asleep?" she asked.

Tahu shrugged and avoided her gaze, clearly embarrassed. "I only woke a little while ago myself," he replied harshly.

Gali looked at the clock. It was one in the afternoon, and she had come to the hospital directly after breakfast.

"Did you not sleep well last night?" Tahu asked, concerned.

"I woke early," Gali said with a shrug. She was surprised that Mrs. Carpenter hadn't come earlier. Maybe her errands were taking longer than she thought

"Oh, Mrs. Carpenter came in a few hours ago. When she saw you were asleep, she asked me to tell you she was going home, and to call when you were ready to leave," Tahu said.

Gali nodded then paused. "A few hours ago? Tahu, how long have you been watching me sleep?" she asked.

Tahu looked away sheepishly. "Since... 9:30," he muttered.

"You've just been sitting there for three and a half hours?" she exclaimed quietly.

"It's not like I could do anything else," Tahu snorted defensively, irritation evident.

"You could have woken me," Gali chastised softly.

Tahu began to mess with his bed sheets, still avoiding Gali's gaze. "You looked tired" was all he would say. Gali was about to reply when Lanie peered in, an excited twinkle in her eyes.

"Hi Tahu, Gali, um, Mrs. Carpenter just called my folks. She asked if we could give you a ride home, Gali, and my parents invited you over for dinner! We're ready to go, but we can wait, if you want to," Lanie finished, a bit shyly. She was now dressed in denim capris and a purple T-shirt, and looked bright and alert.

"Thank you for the invitation. Tahu and I were just saying our goodbyes," she smiled at Tahu, but he was still pointedly avoiding her gaze. Saddened and a bit annoyed, Gali stood to go with Lanie.

"You will be here tomorrow, won't you?" Tahu asked as they were leaving.

Gali turned and looked him in the eye, a surprised yet happy look on her face. "Of course," she said. Tahu smiled briefly, and the two girls left.


	25. Chapter 25: Girl Talk

Here's a little more on Lanie. Sorry if she's a bit ambiguous at the beginning, but I knew as much as you did about her. She wasn't really intended as a main character, but I guess she ended up being one. Oh well...

Disclaimer: Lanie is mine, along with her family, but the Toa Nuva aren't. Feel free to use the Toa in your own stories.

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"Mom! Dad! This is…" Lanie stopped her eager introduction short, unsure of how to introduce Gali. Did she just go by Gali? Did she have a code name, or something? Should she make one up? "… Cameron's cousin," she finished lamely, hoping it was a safe enough answer.

"I'm Gabby," the Toa of Water said, supplying a name as she held out her hand.

Lanie's father shook Gali's hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Miss Gabby. Is there a last name that goes with that?" he inquired.

"Nicholson, same as Cameron's," Lanie said quickly.

"Well, Miss Nicholson, I'm Bill Landon, and this is my wife, Celeste. And you've already met my daughter," Mr. Landon said. His wife smiled in acknowledgement and went back to concentrating on her phone call. "Celeste is a secretary for the company I work at, and she and some of her coworkers are planning a surprise party for the boss. Oh, and we have a son, Sam, but he's off at a party, won't be home till late. Now, my daughter and I aren't like that, we don't socialize as much, but Sam and my wife…"

Gali nodded, obviously trying to keep up with Mr. Landon's mile-a-minute summary of his life, family, job situation, and opinion on just about everything. Lanie sighed. When she could get a word in edgewise, she tried to steer the conversation towards topics her dad had a less wordy opinion on, not any easy task by any means. As soon as they arrived at the Landon household, a contemporary two story home in a crowded suburb, Lanie quickly pulled Gali up the stairs and into her room before her dad could start up again.

"Sorry about that," she said as they got to her bedroom. "My dad's really a great guy, but he tends to be a bit talkative."

"That's all right," Gali said, sitting on the pastel comforter on the bed. "I'm kind of used to it, being Lewa's sister."

Lanie laughed and plopped down on the office chair at her desk, and Gali looked around the room. Lanie noticed her interest in a large poster of a beach on her lilac walls.

"Waikiki beach, in Hawaii," she said. "My parents went there for a business conference in June, and bought it for me. My brother Sam and I went camping with his friends because they weren't home, so I guess it was a good thing they went." She still felt upset about her parents leaving her for the beginning of summer, not only because she had wanted to come and knew they could have easily afforded it, but also because of the frequency of these trips. The fact that they had been home for these past few weeks was in itself unusual.

"Did you want to go?" Gali inquired.

"Nah, it wasn't really that," Lanie said, shrugging. Kopaka had mentioned Gali's way of telling exactly what you were feeling. "They're usually gone most of the summer, and I wish…"

"What?" Gali inquired.

Lanie looked away. "I wish you guys could stay here forever," she admitted softly. When Gali just sat and watched her inquiringly, she went on. "I-I've never really been good at making friends with most people around here, because I… I just act differently that most girls. You know, into make-up and boys and all that. Plus, being dyslexic and all, most people think I'm… a bit weird. When I met Kopaka, down at the campground, I really seemed to get along with him, well, as much as you can with someone who barely says two words," Lanie giggled at this, and Gali smiled. "I guess I feel like… almost a part of your group. And when you leave, it will just be me again, with my parents off who knows where, and Sam with his friends." A few tears trickled down Lanie's cheek, and she wiped them away stubbornly. She was hoping to become friends with Gali, not end up complaining about her whole life and crying about it. Lanie was about to apologize when Gali surprised her by putting her arms around her in a sisterly embrace. Lanie just allowed the rest of her tears to fall, not really crying, and sighed.

"Sorry," she said with a watery smile.

"It's all right. You have a right to be saddened by that," Gali said gently. They sat in a friendly sort of silence until Mr. Landon called them down for dinner. Lanie jumped up and checked her face in the small light blue mirror on her wall. She didn't want to worry her parents, or make them ask too many questions.

"Do I look like I've been crying?" she asked.

"No, you look fine," Gali said. "Come on."

Lanie grinned and followed Gali down the stairs.

Dinner was an awkward affair, as Mrs. Landon chose, under the guise of friendly curiosity, to interrogate Gali on her home, friends, schooling, and everything else she could think of. Lanie tried to steer the conversation towards other things, knowing her mother's curiosity would most likely reveal too much, and finally gave in to desperation and asked her dad about his current job, a touchy topic with him that was sure to get a long talk out of him. As Lanie predicted, he was soon going on about responsibility, control, and respect, never noticing as Lanie and Gali cleared the table, and Mrs. Landon left to take a phone call. Only when his own cell rang did he stop, and Lanie turned to escape with Gali.

"Hey Lanie, I need to talk to you for a bit," he said, still on the phone.

Lanie turned to look at him. "Yes, Dad?" she asked.

"The company wants me to help out with the surprise party, but it's taking place in the city. I can't just go for a day or two, the commute is too long for that, so I was wondering if you would be okay if it was just you and Sam for a bit, like a week or so," he said. "Oh, hold on-" Mr. Landon turned back to his cell and began talking again. Lanie bit her lip, trying to keep the tears back. Next week was her parent's anniversary, and they definitely would be gone for that; now they would most definitely be gone this week, too. When her dad got off the phone and looked at her expectantly, she had blinked back her tears and plastered a grin on her face.

"Sure, Dad, that'd be fine," she lied.

"Great, I'll just go buy my plane ticket. Don't worry, pumpkin, I'll get you something while I'm down there," he said, heading towards the den where Kopaka had been staying.

"Would it be all right if Lanie stayed at the Carpenters' while you are away?" Gali asked, surprising both Lanie and Mr. Landon.

"Well, sure, I guess, if they don't mind, yeah, that'd be fine," Mr. Landon said with a shrug before disappearing into the den.

"I'll go pack!!" Lanie exclaimed, running up the stairs to her room. "I have a phone up in my room, so you can call Mrs. Carpenter from there." She stopped at the top of the stairs to wait for Gali, who followed at a slower pace. She walked with an almost undetectable limp, which Lanie hadn't noticed till then. "Do you need some help?" she asked.

"I'm fine," Gali insisted casually, mounting the stairs at the same steady pace. Once on the second floor, she and Lanie went into Lanie's room, where the teenager handed Gali a phone.

"Do you know her number?" she asked as she pulled a black duffel bag out from under her bed. It was half full of some of Lanie's art supplies, her sketchbook, and a few pieces of nicer paper in a folder. Gali nodded and dialed as Lanie pulled a few pairs of capris and a skirt from her closet. Soon, her black bag was full, and Gali was done with the phone, a smile on her face.

"Mrs. Carpenter said it would be fine if you and your brother stayed at her house, if you don't mind that it's a little crowded," Gali reported.

"Does Mrs. Carpenter know about…" Lanie trailed off with a glance at the door, hoping her parents weren't listening in or anything.

"Yes, they know that we're Toa," Gali said.

Lanie nodded and glanced around. On her desk, an open sketchbook lay under her desk lamp. Neither of the girls had noticed it earlier, and now Gali went over to look at it. It was a picture of Kopaka, dripping wet, on a darkened raft at a lake. The picture was in pencil and half colored.

"Did you draw this?" Gali asked.

Lanie nodded, a bit embarrassed. She didn't want Gali to see her art, especially the portraits of Gali's brothers she had done. It might be a bit awkward, having someone you just met drawing pictures of your family.

"It's wonderful," Gali said. She turned the page to see a pencil drawing of Kopaka, Tahu, and Lewa, all at a park. Kopaka was glaring irritably at Lewa, and Tahu was staring out past the edge of the picture, his brow furrowed in concentration. Gali smiled at this one, and flipped through the rest of the book. A few of the smaller pictures were colored, but most were just pencil sketches. Some were of people Gali wouldn't recognize, Lanie knew, but many were of the three Toa Lanie had met.

"Do you do them from memory, or do you sketch it with them there?" Gali asked when she reached blank pages. Lanie hid her relief when Gali turned back to the picture it had been open to, and didn't flip through the rest of the book. At the back, she had drawn a sketch of Pohatu from when she first met him. For some reason, that sketch seemed special, different from the rest.

"From memory. I-I've never shown anyone my drawings before," she said a bit sheepishly. She had originally planned to post them online, if only to see how people liked them, but now she couldn't stand the thought of other people seeing them.

"So no one knows about these drawings?" Gali asked, sitting on the edge of Lanie's bed.

"Nope." Lanie shook her head to emphasize it and sat down herself. "When will Mrs. Carpenter be here?" she asked with slightly forced cheer, abruptly changing the subject.

"Pretty soon. Do you want to take your sketchbook?" Gali asked.

"No, I have another one in my bag," Lanie said. _I'd rather not chance anyone else seeing them_, she added in her head. "Do you want to wait out front?"

"Sure," Gali said. Lanie stood quickly and grinned as they went outside.

"I always love being outside. It feels so much more…" Lanie frowned as she tried to think of the right word.

"Open?" Gali suggested.

"No, more… more free!" Lanie exclaimed. She set her bag down by the garage, lifted her arms, and twirled in the evening sun. Gali laughed, and Lanie soon joined in, plopping down beside the Toa of Water on the front steps. The two girls had just lapsed into a peaceful, happy silence when a brown station wagon pulled into the driveway.

"She's here! Hi, Mrs. Carpenter!" Lanie waved, smiling. The thought of meeting the other Toa Nuva, along with Gali's honest friendliness and the idea of staying in a busy, bustling household instead of an empty one for two weeks filled her with excitement. Mrs. Carpenter got out of the car and gave Lanie a big hug.

"It's been much too long, Lanie dear, and the boys miss you," she said. "So, how was dinner?" she asked as she released Lanie, her question directed at Gali.

"It was fine, but I did miss your cooking," Gali said with a smile.

"Do you have everything, then?" Mrs. Carpenter asked. Lanie nodded. "Well, put it in the trunk, and pile on in. We'll just make a quick stop by the hospital to pick up Pohatu and then head home."

Lanie and Gali complied, and soon the brown station wagon pulled out of the driveway and off towards the town center.


	26. Chapter 26: Back on the Ranch

Yeah, a lot of filler, but I can't just have them magically be at the Carpenter house. Plus, something's up with Lanie in that first part, so I've gotta figure what... :)

Don't worry, the boys at the hospital haven't been forgotten. They'll come back soon.

Disclaimer: ... I wonder what would happen if I wrote fan fiction and DID own Bionicle...?

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_Lanie sure has been quiet this whole time_, Gali thought. She and Lanie sat in the backseat of Mrs. Carpenter's car, while Pohatu sat shotgun, or in the front right-hand side of the car. Ever since they had picked the Toa of Stone up from the hospital, Lanie's cheerful chatter had dwindled down too an unusual silence. _Pohatu didn't seem to notice_, Gali thought. He had been talking about his visit to the hospital. Gali also noted that Pohatu and Lanie had obviously met before, as Pohatu had greeted her by name before anyone could introduce them.

"So, Lanie, been keeping Kopaka out of trouble for me?" Pohatu asked, turning back too look at her.

"Oh, yes, umm, yeah, sort of…" Lanie seemed surprised and flustered at his sudden question, and blushed furiously.

"I heard you saved him from drowning down at the lake," Pohatu continued, seeming not to notice Lanie's fumbling. Gali found her new friend's awkwardness confusing, as Lanie seemed to be a very outgoing, friendly type. _Much like my Stone brother_, she thought with a chuckle, glancing back and forth between them knowingly.

Lanie was saved from further tongue-tied moments when Mrs. Carpenter pulled into the driveway of the Carpenter household. The four boys came running out of the house at top speed, calling to Lanie in their excitement.

Gali felt a tug on her pant leg and looked down. Little Chris reached his arms up towards her, and she obligingly lifted him up. With the boy in her arms, she made her way inside. At the kitchen table, Onua and Takanuva were sitting together and talking over their own half-finished dinners.

"Hello, brothers," Gali greeted them as she deposited the toddler on the wood floor.

They looked up in unison.

"Who's your friend?" Onua asked. Gali turned to see Lanie making her way in, bag in hand.

"This is Elaine Landon. She met Kopaka when he first got here, and she's going to stay here for a while," Gali explained.

Lanie waved and smiled cheerily. "You can call me Lanie," she said. Gali saw her eyes methodically scanning the two Toa, most likely memorizing every detail for later drawings.

"I'm Onua, and this is my brother, Takanuva," Onua said, standing and extending a hand. Takanuva did the same, though a bit more slowly. They shook, and Gali excused herself and Lanie to go upstairs and deposit the luggage.

"So, you have six brothers?" Lanie asked incredulously.

Gali nodded.

"And I thought one was bad enough. Do they all argue a lot, or does Lewa just enjoy getting on Tahu's nerves?" she asked with a smirk. Gali laughed.

"You actually met the three most… argumentative of the Toa," Gali explained. They were in Gali's room (where Takanuva had first woken up, before he chose to move to the attic) and were sitting on the day bed.

"So, am I staying in here?" Lanie asked.

"Yes, I believe so. For tonight, that is. There's not much room, but make yourself at home," Gali said. Lanie smiled gratefully and set her bag in the corner. From it she pulled a pencil pouch and sketchbook. Moments later, she was lying on her stomach, drawing cheerfully.

"Do you mind me drawing?" Lanie asked, looking up suddenly. "I kind of feel like I'm ignoring you," she added sheepishly.

"I don't mind," Gali said. "I enjoy watching you draw. You're very good."

Lanie smiled, pleased. She turned back to her drawing and soon finished the preliminary sketch. It was just Onua and Takanuva at the table, but somehow she had captured Onua's thoughtful, interested look as Takanuva related something. There was a twinkle of laughter in both their eyes, showing it must have been an amusing story. The partially empty plates sat idly by them, just as Gali had seen when she first came in.

"You did this all by memory?" Gali asked. Lanie looked up, startled. She had been digging through her bag to grab something, probably to color the picture.

"Y-yes," she said. "Do you like it?"

"It's wonderful!" Gali exclaimed.

"Just wait till it's colored. It'll look even better," Lanie said with a yawn, pulling out a small, battered box. Colorful stickers and drawings covered the worn cardboard. Lanie quickly extracted the proper colored pencils and began to carefully color the sketch. Soon, she had captured the dim interior of the farmhouse, and the textures and patterns of the room, from their clothes to the floor, even to the light filtering in.

"It's wonderful!" Gali exclaimed. She turned to hand the sketchbook back to Lanie, but the young girl had laid her head down and fallen asleep. _It has been a long day_, Gali thought. She lifted Lanie onto the day bed and laid a blanket over her. Gali stifled a yawn herself before lying down on the pull-out bed on the other side of the room. _It's been a long day for all of us. _


	27. Chapter 27: Truth or Dare

Yeah, more filler. I had a bad case of writer's block in this chapter, but I promise the action will pick up in the next chapter. Ah, poor, clueless Pohatu...

Disclaimer: I only have copyrights on Lanie, the Carpenters, and wherever this town that they all live in is. :)

Enjoy, and please review!! That means you, Bookman Jr...

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"Good morning, guys," Gali said cheerfully, opening a window. _She's not even limping, today_, Kopaka noted silently. _I suppose re-discovering her power has helped her recover faster. It is unfortunate the same cannot be said for us_. He glanced around the room as his brothers slowly woke up in the bright morning sunshine. The three of them had moved into this room from an earth hospital, after their dangerous encounter with Makuta Nukra. It had been four days since they moved in, and, to Kopaka's irritation, they hadn't left the room since.

"Kopaka," Gali's voice held a sharp edge to it. "What are you doing up?" He was standing by the other window, hands clasped behind his back, and had been looking out at the forest behind the Carpenter's house, searching for any clue that Makuta Nukra was near.

"What time is it?" Lewa asked groggily, sitting up in bed. Kopaka noticed that Gali didn't say anything when the Air Toa got up, stretched, and tested the strength of his newly healed arm. Of all of them, Lewa had suffered the fewest injuries, and thus had recovered the fastest. The day after they had arrived, Gali and Mrs. Carpenter had decided the Toa of Air could get up and wander the house, as long as he didn't do anything to strenuous or stupid. _Like that would ever happen_, Kopaka thought wryly.

"Does it matter?" Tahu replied. "It's not like we'll be doing anything. Excuse me," he glared at Lewa, "Kopaka and I won't be doing anything. You'll be doing whatever you please."

Lewa grinned as Tahu turned away irritably. "Hope you don't go crazymad sitting in the boringdull room," the Air Toa quipped.

Someone knocked on the door. "Anyone hungry?" a cheery voice asked.

"Just come in, Lanie," Gali called, giving Kopaka an _I'll-take-care-of-you-later_ look.

Kopaka turned from his spot by the window, glad for a distraction from the monotony. The teenager came into the room slowly, carrying a large tray.

"Breakfast!" she grinned around at the four Toa. "Hope you guys like eggs and bacon, 'cause that's all we've got. Mr. Carpenter will be picking some groceries up on the way home from work." Tahu just glowered at Lewa and pushed himself up. He let out a small grunt of pain and grasped his side.

"Careful, Tahu," Gali reprimanded sternly. "You're still a bit tender. You need to lie still and let yourself heal."

"Easy for you to say," Tahu muttered.

Kopaka rolled his eyes and sat down on his own bed. While he enjoyed the solitude that could come with recuperating, Tahu and Gali's arguing was getting on his nerves. _At least we don't have to put up with any more renditions of 99 bottles of pop on the wall from Lewa_, he thought. Isaac had taught the song to Lewa when they first arrived, claiming it was the hardest song to sing all the way through. Lewa had then become determined to finish the song, a feat which he accomplished at least three times.

"So, do you want to play checkers later?" Lanie asked. Kopaka knew she was just trying to help him pass the time, because she had lost every game.

"That's all right," Kopaka said. "You'd best enjoy the weather while it is this nice."

"No, I really don't mind. I think I'm even getting better!" Lanie said quickly.

"Hey, guess what!" Pohatu called, sticking his head in the door. "No work today! Onua and I are staying home!"

"Evergreat news, brothers!" Lewa replied. Pohatu pulled up a chair beside Tahu's bed and the three Toa began to chat about what had been going on recently.

"What's that?" Pohatu asked, pointing to the board Lanie was setting up.

"Oh, it's a checker board," Lanie replied, slightly flustered.

"What's a checker board?" he asked, moving his chair over to the table where Lanie was setting the game up.

"Well, checkers is a strategy game. The basic idea is to capture as many of your opponents pieces as possible," Lanie explained as she placed the pieces. After she explained the rules of the game, Pohatu challenged her to a game. The two began to play.

-----

After about half an hour of playing checkers, Lanie finally won, only for Pohatu to challenge her again. This time, Pohatu won, and Lanie offered to teach him some card games. Gali joined them, as did Tahu, though it was more out boredom than anything. Kopaka only watched, but the one time he did play lost miserably.

"Don't worry, this isn't as much about strategy," Lanie consoled him lightly. "It's mostly about luck, and you just got a bad hand."

"It's never just about luck," Kopaka replied darkly, retreating back to his window.

They just finished another three rounds of Crazy Eights when Timmy came in and joined them.

"I just got back from the library, and I got a book all 'bout card games," he announced after Tahu won. "Can I teach you guys one?"

"Sure," Pohatu said, and the rest nodded in affirmation.

Tim grabbed the cards and began to pass them out at random. "The point is to collect all the sevens, but not any of the kings. You can only get rid of a king if you have a queen, and you can only trade them for an ace, but you can't tell anyone what your trading, and two's and aces are worth fifty gazillion points, and-"

"Why don't we play something simpler?" Lanie interrupted. "Something that needs less explaining."

"Like Truth-or-Dare!" Timmy exclaimed.

Gali, Pohatu, and Tahu all exchanged confused glances, while Lanie's eyes widened and her face turned vivid pink. _Oh no, not __**this**__ game_, she thought.

"What's… truth or dare?" Pohatu asked.

"Well, someone's it, and they pick somebody else and ask them 'truth or dare?' If they say truth, whoever's it asks them a question, an' they have ta answer it with the truth. An' if they say dare, the person who's it dares 'em!" Tim explained excitedly.

"That sounds fun!" Pohatu exclaimed. "Let's play."

Gali shrugged. "All right."

"Ok…" Lanie said hesitantly. She had had some bad experiences with this game, and hoped not to relive them.

"Fine," Tahu shrugged. "Not like I've got anything better to do."

"Ok, I'll be it first," Tim said. "Ummm, Miss Gali," he pointed. "Truth or Dare?"

"I'll go with dare," Gali said.

"Hmmm," Timmy thought for a moment. "Do a handstand!"

Gali looked questioningly at Lanie.

"You stand on your hands," Lanie explained, miming the actions.

"Like this!" Tim ran over to a small clear area by the door and did a near-perfect handstand.

"Oh, I understand," Gali said. She went over and immediately stood on her hands, "walking" around the area. "Like this?"

"Yeah, that's amazing!" Tim exclaimed. Gali returned to a normal standing position and took her seat.

"Okay, now it's Miss Gali's turn to be next!" Tim said. "Now ya gotta pick someone."

"All right, Pohatu," Gali said. "Truth or dare?"

"I'll take a dare," he said.

"Oh! Oh!" Timmy shouted suddenly, bouncing up and down in his seat and waving his arm in the air. "I've got one!"

"Go ahead," Gali said with a chuckle. "I can't think of anything."

"Use your rock powers!" Tim yelled.

Pohatu thought for a moment. "How?" he finally asked.

"I dunno," Tim shrugged.

"How about I bring a rock in here?" Pohatu asked.

"Yeah!" Tim cried excitedly. Lanie grinned. She, too, was excited to actually see one of the Toa using their elemental powers. _Especially Pohatu_, she thought, then banished the thought from her head.

Pohatu stared at the open door for a few moments. Everyone heard a loud bump, and a grinding, thumping sort of sound. The door slowly swung open, pushed by a large, round _rock_!

"Whoa!" Lanie and Tim both exclaimed in surprise.

"That's so cool!!" Tim yelled. He ran over and touched the stone, verifying that it was real. "That's the coolest thing I've ever seen!"

"C'mere, Tim," Tahu called. Tim ran over to his bed. "Let me show you something."

"Tahu," Gali said warningly.

"I won't light the whole house on fire," Tahu snapped. "Just watch." He held out his hand, closed tightly in a fist. He slowly opened it, and a small red flame sprang to life, centimeters from his palm.

"Wow," Tim said softly, staring as the flame grew larger. As it grew, so did Gali's visible unease and concern. _She's worried about him, not just him possibly burning down the house!_ Lanie realized. _He _is_ recovering, but it's more than just plain worry._. The realization struck her so suddenly that she gasped aloud. _Gali likes Tahu_, she thought, _really likes him. And Tahu likes her back. That's why they argue so much, to cover it up_.

"Fire make you nervous?" Pohatu asked.

"No, it's just…" she trailed off, watching as Tahu lowered the flame in response to Gali's threat to soak him. "Do they always argue like that?"

"Yeah, but they care about each other, beneath it all. They've got a special bond, those two," Pohatu said casually. He smiled at Lanie. "I guess it's my turn to be 'it'. I'll pick you. Truth or Dare?"

"Umm…." Lanie averted her eyes. "Dare," she chose softly.

"You okay?" Pohatu asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Lanie forced a smile.

"All right, I dare you to go ask Mrs. Carpenter when lunch is," Pohatu said. Lanie smiled gratefully at him and went to ask.

"That's not a real dare!" Tim complained from behind. Lanie froze. Tim knew he could get away with daring her to do almost anything, and she hadn't instigated her "special babysitter rules" for the game, like she normally did. "A real dare's something she wouldn't do, unless someone dared her, like…" he looked around for inspiration then grinned evilly. "Like giving you a kiss!" he exclaimed.

Lanie looked stricken, her face a bright crimson. Of all the things for Timmy to suggest! Gali looked shocked, and Tahu's face contorted in a way Lanie decided not to interpret. Pohatu looked mildly stunned, mostly by the looks everyone else had, and shrugged.

"I can't take back a dare, Tim, and I kind of like mine better," he said casually. Lanie turned to go finish his harmless dare. "One question, though," Pohatu added. Lanie looked back to see him ask, in full seriousness: "What's a kiss?"


	28. Chapter 28: Boy Talk

Ah poor, clueless Pohatu...

Lanie's still not talking to me about that one... sorry, but it had to happen!!! It's not like you would have told him on your own!!

Lanie: No it didn't!! This isn't necessary!! If you don't change it, I'll... I'll tell the Toa where you live!!

Tiger: You don't know where I live. And if you do tell, I'll tell Tahu that you told Gali that he likes her.

Lanie: You wouldn't

Tiger: Hey, Tahu! Guess what...

Lanie: Fine! Let me die of embarrassment... *leaves*

Whew, crisis averted... Wait, how did she find me here?

Disclaimer: I do own Lanie and the Carpenter clan, but no Toa. :(

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_What's a kiss? Does he _seriously_ not know?_ Tahu thought in shock. He saw Lanie dart out of the room, and Gali look away, her face pink. _Well, I'm not going to tell him_. He then noticed that his hand was resting on the table, very close to Gali's. Tahu snatched it away and looked at the wall.

"What?" Pohatu asked, looking around the group. "Is it something I said?"

"Well…" Gali started, but didn't continue.

"Jake's real good at explainin'. He told me and Isaac, and Miss Gali and Tak," Tim piped up. "I'll go get him." He scampered out of the room.

"So, is it bad or something?" Pohatu asked after a moment.

"It's a physical way of expressing a romantic attraction towards someone. Lanie is probably embarrassed because she has romantic feelings for you," Kopaka said sternly from the other side of the room.

"She… what?" Pohatu exclaimed.

"You haven't noticed?" Tahu asked incredulously.

"Well, no," Pohatu replied.

"You haven't noticed her blush every time you talk to her?" Gali gently prodded.

"Or the fact that she hardly says two words when you're around?" Kopaka added, not quite as gently.

"I noticed, but I didn't think that…" Pohatu trailed off. "You really think she likes me like that?"

"No, we're saying it because we _don't_ think that!" Tahu snapped. He was growing tired of all the relational talk, and was nervous that the conversation would turn on him and Gali. Since becoming human, his feelings for his fellow Toa of Water had only grown. He had assumed that it was only worry, but now that she was with him, and he knew she was safe, his feelings still threatened to reveal themselves. _Pohatu can be totally open about all this, but not me_, he thought darkly. He looked away and saw Kopaka studying him intently. The Toa of Ice lifted an eyebrow questioningly and subtlety glanced at Gali. Tahu shot him a fiery glare, only to be rewarded with a near smile from Kopaka. As his brother turned back to the window, Tahu again wished he was able to get up. His insides had basically been torn apart after his encounter with Makuta Nukra, and they were still healing. At that moment, Lanie stuck her head in the doorway.

"Lunch is on the table now, guys. I'll bring up a tray for Tahu and Kopaka, you and Pohatu should go down to the dining room." She said, directing her message to Gali. She didn't look anyone in the eye, but stared at the floor and darted out after delivering it.

"Oh dear," Gali said. "She might have heard us."

"Why is that a bad thing?" Pohatu asked.

Gali sighed and shook her head. "Let's go get lunch," she said instead. "I'll come back up later," she added to Tahu and Kopaka.

"See you then," Tahu replied, watching her leave. Kopaka coughed quietly, and Tahu turned to glare at him. The Toa of Ice had a triumphant gleam in his eye. "What?" Tahu snapped.

"Your feelings are written clearly on your face," Kopaka replied. "You're smitten."

"What does that even mean?" Tahu retorted sharply.

Kopaka sighed. "You're infatuated, romantically attracted. You, brother, are in love with Gali."

"Why would you think that?" Tahu asked, much too quickly. Before Kopaka could reply, Lanie came in with a loaded tray. She silently set it down on the table and sat wearily on one of the wooden chairs. Tahu grabbed his plate and began to eat, but Kopaka merely watched Lanie as she sadly stared off into space. After a moment she turned to look up at him, unshed tears glistening in her eyes.

"Is it that obvious?" she asked in a soft, wavering voice.

"Yes," Kopaka said bluntly, sitting on the edge of his bed. "But that is not a bad thing. Hiding your feelings for too long would only cause you more pain. Now that he knows how you feel, he will be more inclined to tell you how he feels. Knowing Pohatu, he will feel obligated to share his opinion with you, anyway," he added wryly.

"But what if he doesn't like me?" Lanie asked, a single tear escaping.

Kopaka appeared uncomfortable. "You will have to go on," he said quietly, shrugging. "He is not the only one out there."

Tahu looked at his brother. It was a surprise to see Kopaka try to comfort anyone, as he had never seemed, and still didn't seem, the comforting type. _Why is he doing this?_ Tahu wondered.

"I suppose Lewa, Onua, Takanuva, and the Carpenters are the only ones who don't know, if they haven't figured it out be now," Lanie sighed.

Kopaka picked up his dish and returned to his place at the window. To Tahu's surprise, he didn't go back to staring out, but sat on the ledge and watched Lanie eat out of the corner of his eye. _Does he…?_ Tahu thought, too surprised to finish his thought. _He does, doesn't he?_ Tahu almost laughed aloud at the idea. Kopaka, the loner, the one Toa who thought he didn't need anyone, the one who would never admit to having any friends or anything, was in love with a teenage human girl. _And an outgoing, talkative one at that_, Tahu thought wryly.

Lanie said nothing through the meal, and left shortly after finishing her lunch. Kopaka set his plate on the tray and sat back down on the bed, pulling out a book.

"I saw that," Tahu said smugly. Kopaka pointedly ignored him, only irritating Tahu more. "You like her, don't you?"

"If you don't mind, I am attempting to read a book," Kopaka retorted. "Not that you would understand anything with so little violence in it."

"I know you like her, Kopaka," Tahu growled. Somehow, Kopaka managed to get on his nerves in a way that no one else could.

"I like her better than you, if that is what you are insinuating, though that does not say much," Kopaka said evenly, still not looking up from his novel.

Tahu opened his mouth to snap a witty retort, but the entire room began to shake, as if a bioquake had just struck. It came on so suddenly even Kopaka looked surprised as he and Tahu hung on to their beds. As soon as it had struck, the shaking stopped, and the Toa looked at each other in surprise.

"What..?" Tahu started to say, holding his stomach. He was pretty sure something had been shaken loose in there.

"Stay here. I will be back," Kopaka said over his shoulder as he left the room.

"No, I'm coming too," Tahu swung his legs over the side of the bed and slowly stood. Another tremor struck, and he stumbled towards the door.

"Tahu! Kopaka! What are you two doing out here?" Gali asked as she stumbled up the stairs.

"What's happening?" Kopaka snapped, ignoring her chastisement.

"We don't know, but Mrs. Carpenter says this isn't normal for this area. Get in the doorway!" Gali yelled, pushing Kopaka under the doorframe. Tahu stumbled over to them and braced himself there with one hand, the other firmly clamped over his protesting insides. As soon as the bioquake stopped, Gali turned towards the two Toa, her feelings clearly displayed in her fierce glare.

"Tahu, what are you doing out of bed? You could have been seriously hurt, or worse!" Gali snapped.

"Well, I'm fine!" Tahu retorted angrily. "I can take care of myself." Neither of them noticed Kopaka calmly descend the stairs. 


	29. Chapter 29: Earthquake!

Grab your parachute, cause there's a cliff at the end!! And thank you all for your reviews!! 28 reviews... wow!! *happy dance* I may be redoing some of the earlier chapters, as I've been editing them recently. And if I don't update soon, it's due to my classes, not the Toa finding me (my readers have been ever so helpful in keeping them... distracted. Thanks, you guys!!). Midterms are coming up, and this weekend may be a bit hectic. :P oh well.

Disclaimer: Do not own Bionicle, only the OCs and copious amounts of reading for my classes.

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"Wait here, I'll go check upstairs," Takanuva said to the four boys gathered in the living room doorway. He darted across the hall, jumping over chairs and various debris, but stopped at the stairs. Kopaka was slowly making his way down, bracing himself on the railing.

"Why are you down here?" Takanuva asked as the last tremor stopped. "Shouldn't you be up in your room?"

Kopaka ignored his brother and made his way to the living room. "Where's Lanie?" He asked calmly, his limp less notable on the even ground.

"In the living room," Takanuva replied. He was always slightly unnerved by Kopaka's complete calm. The Toa of Ice began to help the Carpenter boys to their feet. Takanuva hurried over to help, and noticed Pohatu helping Lanie to her feet with a shy, goofy grin. The Stone Toa had wrapped his arms protectively around her during the quake, Takanuva had noticed. Kopaka saw, too, and, to the Toa of Light's surprise, left immediately afterwards. Takanuva shrugged it off and herded the boys to the kitchen, where Rose Carpenter met them and hugged the five of them tightly.

"Do you know what happened?" Onua asked. He was holding a pile of dishes and cups that had fallen from the cupboard.

Takanuva shrugged as best he could. The semi-awkward group hug he had gotten stuck in was growing more uncomfortable by the minute. Onua didn't seem to notice as he silently put the dishes back in the cupboard and left.

"Are you all okay?" Rose was asking. "No hurts, or scratches?" The boys shook their heads, solemnly. "And how about you, Tak? Aren't you going to let me look at that cut on your arm?"

Takanuva glanced down in surprise to see a small trickle of blood on his arm. "Oh, right," he muttered in surprise. Honestly, he hadn't even noticed.

"I'll wash it off then patch it up. You should be more watchful, Tak," Rose chastised, grabbing a washcloth. She cleaned and bandaged his arm then, to his surprise, gently kissed him on the cheek. "You're a brave boy, Tak. It's good to have you in our family."

Takanuva stared at her in shock for a moment, but smiled. "Thanks… Aunt Rose." he said hesitantly.

Rose smiled at him, and shooed the boys into the living room. "I'm going to go get the other Toa. Stay here," she commanded sternly.

Takanuva nodded and had the boys sit down. Something odd was going on, and he had a funny feeling that the Makuta was somehow behind it. He then silently swore to protect the Carpenter family with his life, as thanks for their friendship. He wouldn't let anything harmful happen to them, ever.

-----

Kopaka found himself outside after leaving the living room, and took the opportunity to scan the surrounding forest for anything unusual.

"There was something odd about that bioquake." Kopaka turned to see the Toa of Earth kneeling on the ground, one hand half buried in the dirt. "It didn't feel right," Onua clarified.

Kopaka nodded and swept his gaze over the forest again. To his surprise, the trees began to fade away, and he could see into the forest, as if he had activated his Kanohi Akaku.

"My…mask…" he murmured in amazement. He turned to Onua, but quickly looked away. Seeing his brother in his undergarments was not exactly something he wanted to do.

"Your eye," Onua exclaimed softly. "It's red. And I can see the markings of your old mask on your face."

Kopaka focused, willing his mask to deactivate, and turned to his brother. "Yes, I believe we have retained our mask powers as well as our elemental control," he said, his mind racing. Onua stood and stretched his five foot eight frame.

"We should go in. Call a meeting," Onua said, heading towards the door. He waited as Kopaka slowly limped up the stairs to the deck. His leg hadn't fully healed, but it didn't bother him unless he went up or down stairs. In the living room, the Carpenter boys, Takanuva, Pohatu, Lanie, Sam, Gali, and Lewa had already gathered, and were righting the knick-knacks and books that had fallen to the floor.

"Kopaka, what are you doing down here? You could easily re-injure your leg, and end up spending a week in bed," Gali snapped when she saw the Toa of Ice enter. "Sit down, before you do any more harm. And be careful when you do."

Kopaka was about to argue, but one look at Gali's fierce stare told him it would be better for his health if he didn't. The Toa of Ice eased himself into one of the dining room chairs, meeting Gali's harsh gaze with measured daring.

"Is Tahu upstairs?" Onua asked.

"Yes, he is," she said gently. "As you should be," she added to Kopaka. The Ice Toa pointedly ignored her.

"What just happened?" Tim asked his eyes wide with worry.

"That's what we're going to find out," Takanuva replied, kneeling beside the young boy. "There's nothing for you to worry about. This was probably just a normal bioquake."

"You mean earthquake," Isaac corrected. "It's called an earthquake."

"Yes, that," Takanuva replied quickly.

"Why don't you tell us everything you know about these… earthquakes," Gali added, sitting on the couch next to Jake. The Carpenter boys (except Chris, who had fallen asleep in Takanuva's arms shortly after the quake) took turns explaining everything they knew, or thought they knew, about earthquakes.

"Thank you for your help," Gali said once they had finished their mixed up explanation.

"I'll take them now. Thank you for watching them." Rose, who had come in during the boys' explanation, now stood to bring them to the other room. "It may be best if we all stay away from the windows for a while. Some earthquakes have aftershocks."

"We will," Takanuva promised.

"Tahu will not want to be left out of our meeting," Kopaka stated.

"We probably should head upstairs," Pohatu agreed.

"Do you want Sam and me to leave?" Lanie asked.

"No, come with us. You know this land better than we do. Your input would be most welcome," Gali replied, helping a reluctant Kopaka to his feet.

Kopaka grimaced and turned away, happening to glance out the kitchen window. He activated his mask and scanned the surrounding forest. "We have company," he informed the others. "The Makuta."

Everyone froze, looking at him in mingled surprise and fear.

"He's here?" Lanie murmured questioningly, her face turning pale. Kopaka nodded reluctantly, not wanting to add to her unease.

"Where?" Gali asked.

"Out in the woods. He's kneeling, and… Brace yourselves!" Kopaka snapped sharply, grabbing onto the doorway. A split-second later, another tremor hit, harder than the first. Onua dug a hand into the carpet, anchoring himself to the ground, and grabbed Takanuva, who had been knocked to his feet. Sam wrapped his arms around his sister and hit the ground, shielding her from the glass fragments coming from the shattering window. Only quick action by Lewa and Pohatu kept the shards of glass from completely coating the human siblings. Pohatu shoved them out of the way, unwittingly activating his mask of speed, and Lewa instinctively summoned a breeze to blow the glass out.

The tremors stopped as soon as they started. The Toa slowly picked themselves up and began to re-order the room. Kopaka allowed himself to sink to the floor, wincing as his leg twisted at an odd angle. It was nearly healed, and there was barely any scaring, but the muscle was still tender. Gali didn't notice, to his relief, as his sister was checking on Pohatu and Sam, who had received the bulk of the in blown glass.

"Is anyone hurtscared badly?" Lewa asked. A kind of negative muttering came from the assembled Toa and humans.

"I-I'm going to check on the Carpenters," Takanuva said quickly, darting out of the room.

Gali turned to Kopaka. "So, our mask powers work as well?" she asked

Kopaka nodded.

"They do? Sweet, I've got to testtry this!" Lewa leapt, did a back flip and stopped, hovering mid-air. "Mata Nui, they work!" he exclaimed.

Sam and Lanie stared in shock at Lewa's sudden levitation. Kopaka rolled his eyes and was about to explain about his brother's mask of levitation when a piercing scream of surprise resonated through the house.


	30. Chapter 30: The Offer

Sorry this is up late, blame my psychology test. And sorry it's a short chap. The next part will be longer, I promise.

Oh, and I will be re-doing some of the earlier chaps (few minor changes and such), and since I am very rapidly nearing the end of the story (and have yet to _write _the ending), I may be working on that and not have time to update or write more. So if I'm slacking on updates, that's why. I'm not abandoning my story, don't worry.

Disclaimer: While I do own the Carpenters and (unfortunately) Nukra, I don't own the Toa Nuva. :(

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After the last quake, Rose Carpenter had also seen the dark form standing in the woods, now watching the house with malevolent satisfaction. She stepped out onto the porch, giving him a menacing glare known to all mothers.

"Who are you?" she snapped. Rose was normally a patient woman, but the earthquakes had unnerved her, and the man's evil look just added to her unease.

The man nearly grinned, but was watching the entire house, almost searching. "Do you know of any beings called the Toa Nuva?" he asked conversationally.

Her eyes widened in surprise. _How did he…?_ She pushed the thought away. "Why do you want to know?" she retorted.

"They are in your house, correct?" he asked, ignoring her question. "Would you kindly bring them out here? And all of them, I don't want one running off and getting hurt or doing anything stupid." He examined something in his hand as Rose's mind whirled. _I can't let him get to them,_ she thought. _Not Tak and his friends_.

"You can keep that golden haired one you and your kin are so fond of, I only need the other six," the man said, still standing casually in the forest. Rose took an involuntary step back, the thoughts in her mind going faster than she thought possible. Ever since his sudden arrival, a Tak had been the perfect older brother for her boys, the one that they should have had. She couldn't agree; she couldn't just hand Tak's real family off to some stranger. But a chance for Tak to be truly part of their family, for them to have that eldest son that they should have had, that they did have, at one point, if only for a while…

"I'll come back tomorrow for your answer. Until then," the man bowed with a flourish and, to Rose's shock, unfurled two great black wings and took off into the dense forest, darting through the trees with surprising agility. She cried out in surprise and stumbled back into the house, shutting and bolting the door.

"What happened?" Rose whirled around to see Pohatu and the green-eyed boy, Lewa, rushing over, their faces mirrored masks of concern.

"N-nothing, I…" she took a deep breath. "There was someone in the back yard, asking for you. He's gone, now." Rose tried to settle her thoughts. She would never betray the Toa; deep in her heart she knew that. As the Toa darted outside to affirm what she had said, Rose headed into the ground level den where Tak and her boys, no, where all of her boys were. Even if he couldn't stay forever, Toa Takanuva of Light was a part of the Carpenter family. That she knew for certain.


	31. Chapter 31: Battle Strategy

Sorry I didn't update yesterday. The internet connection was all sorts of nasty yesterday. Since it's Friday (yay!!!) and I have nothing to do (because I have no social life, only fan fiction) I will be adding another chapter. And because I'm feeling generous. :)

And, Nukra is back (que evil theme music)!! The Toa must plan for his iminent return!! Oooh, suspense!!!

Disclaimer: I have no claims on Bionicle whatsoever, and only own the OCs (whom I am currently holding captive to make the Toa stay away)

And please review!! I want to know what you all think!! Even criticisms, I'll take them!

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Late that night, the Toa gathered in the makeshift hospital room where Tahu and Kopaka still stayed. Lanie and Sam had bedded down in the den on the first floor, as the living room was covered in glass slivers. Pohatu's back and shoulders, now free of glass slivers, were covered in white bandages and medical ointment. He said nothing, but the ointment stung and he was sure that Gali had missed at least one of the slivers, because he felt it inching its way into his back.

"We'll have to be prepared for tomorrow. Set up traps and have a battle plan," Tahu said as Gali finished taping down the last strip of gauze on Pohatu's shoulder.

"This house will be difficult to defend. Too many ways that Nukra could come at it," Kopaka muttered.

"But he said he'll be back for Aunt Rose-er-Mrs. Carpenter's answer. We could ambush him from there," Takanuva offered.

"No, he'd expect something like that." Tahu frowned, mulling it over. "It has to be something unexpected, tricky."

"What if we…" Pohatu frowned, figuring out the rest of his idea. "… we gave ourselves up, and… no, that wouldn't work…" He wasn't used to making plans. His philosophy was: go for it, make it up as you go, and hope you were somewhere else when everything exploded.

"If one of us, with a tracer, gave himself up, then we could find where this Makuta's lair is," Onua said thoughtfully.

"But how would we stage it so that Nukra found it believable?" Kopaka countered.

"If all but one of us 'weren't here' then Nukra would be forced to accept the one," Tahu said, his mind whirling with the tactical bits.

"Toa do not abandon each other, why would only one of us be here?" Gali asked.

"If you guys thought Nukra wouldn't bother him, and he could pass for part of the family," Takanuva said slowly. The Toa turned in surprise towards him.

"What do you mean, Toabrother?" Lewa finally asked.

"I, well, I look like one of the Carpenters, but we know that Nukra knows I'm not. He might think that you think that he doesn't know, and so you would leave me here, so that he wouldn't know that I'm here, but he already knows I'm here, but he doesn't know that you know that he knows, so he wouldn't think it was suspicious. Right?" Takanuva asked, glancing around. Most of the Toa just stared at him in confusion. Pohatu shook his head, trying to make sense of what the Toa of Light had just said. He looked at the others, and saw Onua nodding, mentally working through the logistics of it.

"Except that Nukra doesn't seem interested in your capture, only ours. He may overlook you completely in favor of hunting us all down," Kopaka countered bluntly.

"It's a good idea, other than that," Onua added.

"But if the bait was one who couldn't go, who wasn't able to leave…" Kopaka started to say.

"… Someone who would shouttell everyone else to goleave…" Lewa continued, catching on quickly.

"…then Nukra would believe that we considered our possible survival and the safety of the humans more vital than a single team member's life," Onua finished softly.

"I'll do it," Kopaka and Tahu said at the same time. Pohatu held back a chuckle as the two Toa glared at each other.

"I'm still healing. I won't be able to go very far anyway," Tahu snapped.

"Precisely why I should go. You could get yourself hurt worse, while Nukra does not know how much I have healed. I can lead him to believe that I am no threat," Kopaka retorted coldly.

"Tahu, it's too dangerous with your injuries. Kopaka's right, he can act as if his injuries are worse than they are, and he will be able to fight if necessary." Gali gave Tahu a stern glance, to which the Fire Toa glared back defiantly.

"She's right, Nukra could easily overpower you and threaten you to force us to comply," Onua added.

"Fine! If you're all dead set on me not going, fine." Tahu glowered around the room, daring anyone to argue. Pohatu winced. They finally managed to get together after being scattered, and all they could do was argue and fight. _Just like the good old days_, he thought morosely.

"We still need a way to track Kopaka," Gali added. The Toa glanced around the room, not looking at each other.

"A cell phone would work, if you could use a computer," Kopaka stated.

"Yeah, I'm sure we could borrow one from Mrs. Carpenter, Lanie, or Sam," Takanuva added, perking up a bit. The other Toa looked at them with puzzled expressions.

" … what's a cell phone?" Pohatu asked, cocking his head to one side. Kopaka sighed in irritation and quickly explained.

"I can ask Mrs. Carpenter if we can borrow hers in the morning," Takanuva offered after Kopaka's terse explanation.

"Or you could borrow mine." A familiar voice from the door caused the Toa to turn in near-unison. Sam Landon stood leaning against the doorframe, staring at his feet. "Couldn't sleep," he explained sheepishly. Pohatu offered him an encouraging smile and motioned for him to join the meeting, but the young man ignored him. Instead he threw his phone to Kopaka, who caught it expertly with one hand, before turning to leave. "Just… just thought I should help. You did save my sister's life."

"Are you sure?" Gali asked. "It may be… damaged."

"I've got insurance," Sam shrugged. "I don't care."

"Thank you," Tahu said tersely. Sam left as quietly as he had come. _He probably had been listening to us argue for a while! _Pohatu realized. _Well, that's embarrassing_.

"So it's decided. I will take the phone and stay here while you all leave. You can stay at the Landon's house and track me from there," Kopaka said.

"Sam could drive us in the morning," Onua added. "It would be best if he and Lanie knew, as we would be using their home."

"We can ask them in the morning. They need their sleep," Gali replied. "So do certain healing Toa." She glanced over at Tahu, who ignored her.

"Someone should keep watch," he said.

"I'll do it," Pohatu spoke up quickly. He was hoping for some action. While he wasn't as jumpy as Lewa, sitting still wasn't his strong point.

"All right." Tahu nodded. "Get some sleep. We meet at 5." The Toa slowly filtered out and headed to their respective rooms as Tahu and Kopaka readied for bed. Pohatu slowly mounted the attic stairs and headed toward the window. He figured the best place to keep an eye on the grounds was from the rooftop.

"Hey, Pohatu." Pohatu stopped, half way out the window, and turned. "Tell me if you need a replacement," Onua said, extending his fist in a quick salute. Pohatu returned the gesture, and they hit their fists together before the Stone Toa disappeared onto the rooftop.


	32. Chapter 32: Morning chat

Here is the promised second chapter in one day!! It's a long one, too, so you all luck out!!

This was going to be two chapters, but I couldn't figure out where to break it off, so it's just extra long!!!

Disclaimer: No Bionicle ownage here...

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That morning, around 4:30, found Elaine Landon standing on the back porch in her pajamas, staring out at the dewy, sunrise-lit lawn leading to the forest.

"Hey! Didn't know anyone else was up this early!" Lanie turned to see Pohatu standing in the doorway in his pajamas. Pajamas which consisted of a pair of cut off cargo pants and, other than the bandages on his upper back and shoulders, nothing else. Lanie looked away quickly, her face burning, and watched him out of the corner of her eyes. The Toa of Stone didn't seem to notice and walked up next to her, stretching and yawning. A gentle, early morning breeze tossed his dark brown hair, letting the various natural highlights shimmer in the faint sunlight. His medium dark skin seemed to turn a golden-brown as the sun's rays slowly came up over the tree line.

"Beautiful morning isn't it?" he asked.

"Mmhmm," Lanie replied quietly, not trusting her voice, and glanced up. She hadn't noticed, but his eyes were the most beautiful deep brown, with a small, almost golden streaks emanating from the center. Unlike Tahu's, which made his eyes seem a golden color, the streaks in Pohatu's eyes seemed to add a depth and vividness to them.

"Do you… want to talk about, um, you know…" Pohatu trailed off. He was fiddling with something in his hands, and seemed to be trying to hide it.

"Do you?" Lanie asked softly, still not looking fully at him. She had never had a boyfriend before, or even any guy friends after around fifth grade, when boys were deemed to have "cooties".

"Well, I guess, um…" he paused. "Do you want to sit down? There's a bench here."

"Sure," Lanie sat on the bench, at the far corner. Pohatu sat on the other side, and they didn't talk for a long, awkward moment.

"I, uh, I made you something," Pohatu said hesitantly. Lanie turned to stare at him in surprise. "I learned some carving back in Po-koro, that's my old village, and Gali said one of the best ways to, well, um, a gift is a really good way to tell someone you, um, like… them." He held out his hands. Inside, there was a small polished rock, carved into a small stone flower. Lanie took it and stared at it, not knowing what to say.

"Pohatu, I…" she looked up at him, tears stinging her eyes. This was the first gift she had ever gotten from a guy, except elementary-age birthday presents.

"What's wrong? Why are you crying?" he asked, alarm spreading over his dark features.

"Nothing. This is.. it's just…" Lanie stopped. The tears were starting to come faster as she clutched the stone flower to her chest. The gesture had brought up all the old feelings of inadequacy from all the years of watching all the other girls in her class get asked out, pair up, and have that special someone always there with a flower, a comforting word, or a gentle hand squeeze on hard days.

Pohatu looked uncomfortable, which made Lanie feel even worse. _He probably thinks I'm just another emotional air-head, _she thought, trying to dry her tears. To her surprise, he reached over and brushed the tears from her face.

"I-I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to make you upset," he said, looking truly remorseful.

Lanie smiled. "No, it's okay, you didn't upset me, and I really like the flower." She felt bad for making him think that he had done something wrong. "Sometimes girls cry when they're happy," she explained, not wanting to go into why she was crying.

"Oh," Pohatu looked down. "So, you really like it?"

"I love it! It's so delicate," Lanie exclaimed softly.

Pohatu sighed. "Good. I was afraid that Gali meant real flowers when she suggested them."

Lanie giggled. _Gali probably did mean real flowers_, she thought. The stone flower was so much more personal, though, and Lanie absolutely loved it.

"How long did it take you…?" Her question was cut off by a crash in the forest. The two of them turned to see a dark cloaked figure stumble out onto the grass, his black eyes clouded with pain. He was clutching his stomach and staggered unsteadily forward before collapsing to the ground nearly ten feet from the porch. Pohatu leapt to his feet and motioned for Lanie to stay behind him.

"Go get the other Toa," he commanded urgently, watching the moaning figure.

"But what if…?" Lanie started.

"GO!" Pohatu exclaimed, opening the back door and pushing her in. "I'll be fine, don't worry!"

Lanie raced up the stairs to Gali's room, which was actually Jake's room (there weren't enough bedrooms for everyone, and Rose insisted that Gali, being a girl, get her own room, so Jake got to sleep in his brother's room until the guest room wasn't full of healing Toa).

"The Makuta's here and he collapsed out back, and Pohatu's out there all alone!!" she yelled quickly. Gali, who had been watching her with a sleepy, befuddled expression, now jumped out of bed and pulled a robe on over her night gown.

"Go upstairs and tell the others, but don't wake Kopaka or Tahu," she commanded, heading down the stairs. Lanie darted up to the attic and burst in.

"You've got to wake up, the Makuta's here and he collapsed out back, and Pohatu and Gali are out there, and they'll need your help!" she shouted at the sleeping Toa. Takanuva, always a light sleeper, jolted awake and fell out of bed. Onua sat up slowly, and, quickly taking note of Lanie's harried condition, woke Lewa with a hearty shove and headed down stairs. Lanie followed with the two other Toa behind her to the back yard, where Pohatu and Gali were crouched beside the fallen Makuta.

"He's unconscious," Gali informed them as they stared in wide-eyed fascination.

"He just staggered over here and collapsed. I think he's hurt or something," Pohatu said, looking worried. Lanie knelt beside the prone figure and, suppressing a shudder at the aura of evil that seemed to surround him, laid two fingers on his neck.

"I think something's really wrong with him. I can barely feel a pulse," she said.

"But he's…" Lewa started to say, staring at Lanie in shock.

"He's obviously hurt, and we can't just leave him here. We can at least let him rest somewhere comfortable and call an ambulance." She gently began to pull off the thick black jacket to reveal a blood-soaked, once-white tank top.

"Oh my…" Gali murmured, staring in horror. Lanie gasped, her eyes wide.

"We'd better get him inside," Onua said. He and Pohatu slowly lifted the injured Makuta and carried him into the house.

"You can lay him on my bed, it's just an old sleeping bag, so it can get bloody," Lanie said quickly, hurrying ahead to smooth out the well-worn green sleeping bag she had brought from home. In the den where she and Sam had slept, her brother was just waking up as they brought the bloody being into the room.

"Wha-?" Sam stared in confusion, blinking rapidly.

"Go back to sleep. It's not morning yet," Lanie snapped gently. Sam shrugged and turned over, quickly dropping off to sleep.

"Onua, go get my med kit from Jake's room," Gali said as she knelt beside Nukra. "Pohatu, do you know where any scissors are? I need to get this shirt off of him." Pohatu nodded and darted out. "And Lewa, could you…?" She trailed Nukra's body spasmed, his previously still face twisting in pain. Lanie reached forward and grasped his hand, trying to still him. He stopped convulsing and slowly opened his eyes.

"Wh-?" his voice was raspy and his question soon turned into a bout of harsh coughing. Gali gently placed a hand on his winged back and helped him sit up until the coughing subsided.

"You are safe here. We won't harm you unless you try to harm us or our friends. Do you understand?" Gali asked. Her tone was gentle, but Lanie could hear a thinly veiled threat in her words.

Nukra stared at Gali with a puzzled expression, but his face was quickly clouded in pain and he grasped his chest.

"Lanie, go and get me a bowl of water. I'm going to try something." Lanie jumped up and darted off, soon returning with a bowl full of lukewarm water. By now, Nukra was unconscious, his white tank top cut off of him. Gali was wiping as much of the blood away as she could, but more kept coming. Lanie set the water near the bed and sat beside the Makuta, gently brushing his dark hair out of his face.

"He doesn't look so sinister now. He just looks… hurt," Lanie said gently. Gali nodded in understanding. She held her hands over the water and it began to give off a gentle, silvery radiance. As Gali lifted her hands, the water came with them and slowly spread over his chest. A second later, it seemed to flow off of him, though the bed beneath was no wetter than before. Gali slumped over onto Lanie's shoulder, exhausted.

"Did you use your element powers?" Lanie asked in a hushed whisper. Gali nodded.

"It's really energydraining, though, so she doesn't waterheal much," Lewa added, kneeling beside his sister. He, Onua, and Pohatu had stayed in the doorway nearly the entire time.

"I'm all right, and he should be out of danger, though he's far from fully healed," Gali murmured, sitting back up. She looked completely drained, and her dark skin was a little paler than normal.

"Maybe you should get some rest after that," Onua said, gently helping her to her feet.

"I can bandage Nukra up, and I'll keep an eye on him," Lanie added.

"I think some rest would be a good idea," Gali agreed, leaning on Onua's shoulder. He and Takanuva guided her up the stairs. As Lanie tenderly washed away blood from the unconscious Makuta and wrapped the gauze around his chest, she felt someone sit beside her. Two strong, brown hands grabbed some of the gauze to help with the bandaging, and she looked up to see Pohatu kneeling beside the cot, gently wrapping the thin cloth around Nukra's arm.

"Are you okay?" he asked, looking at her with an innocent honesty that made her heart melt.

"I…I'm fine." She quickly looked down, blushing. With a quick application of tape, she finished bandaging Nukra and pulled the blanket up over his pale form.

"So, um…" Lanie chanced a quick glance. Pohatu was staring at the floor, a bloodied rag held limply in his hand. "Do you want to, um, go somewhere?"

"What?" Lanie looked up at him in surprise, sure that he meant something different than what she thought.

"Like, go out. You know, on a…" Pohatu frowned. "I forgot the word," he admitted sheepishly.

"A… date?" Lanie supplied softly.

"Yeah! That!" Pohatu exclaimed.

Lanie laughed at his exuberant outburst. "I-I'd love to."

"How about tonight? We can meet right out the burger joint after I get off from work, and go to dinner from there!" Pohatu looked so excited and pleased that it was all Lanie could do but start laughing_. I must be dreaming,_ she thought incredulously. _This can't be happening to me. No one asks _me_ out. _

"So, you really want to go out tonight? We could go somewhere nice, and dress up a bit. Girls like to dress up, right?" Pohatu suddenly sobered and looked her straight in the eyes. Lanie felt the butterflies in her stomach go on a wild dance.

"S-sure, yeah," she said with a small smile. She couldn't trust her voice for much more than a single syllable.

"Okay." Pohatu smiled at her, an oddly shy smile, and gently took her hand. She returned the smile as her stomach twisted in a knot and she felt her face turn red.

"This is an odd place to ask a girl out, while you're both helping save someone's life," Lanie remarked with a chuckle, looking back at Nukra. He had stopped shivering in his sleep, and his face seemed calmer, almost peaceful.

"Hey, you know we've got work in a few hours," Onua said, coming in. With a glance at Pohatu and Lanie, he chuckled.

"Do you two need some privacy?" he joked. Lanie turned a deeper shade of red and retracted her hand while Pohatu looked at his brother quizzically.

"What?" the Stone Toa asked.

"Nothing," Onua said quickly. "Come on, brother, you'd better get some rest before work."

Pohatu stood and, with a smile at Lanie, left.

"I'll watch him, if you want to go and get some sleep," Onua said after his brother had gone upstairs.

"Well, my bed's kind of in use, and the rest of them are a bit full as well," Lanie said with a chuckle. Onua laughed as well. "I guess I could go find somewhere to sleep. Maybe the kitchen table…" Lanie trailed off in a yawn. Onua gently steered her to the dining room and draped a blanket over her shoulders. "G'night," she muttered as she quickly dropped off to sleep.


	33. Chapter 33: Fools

Yeah, Pohatu and Lanie are going on a date!!! So cute!!!

and Onua... I'm sorry. Really I am.

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle, but wouldn't mind working for them someday. :)

and if I don't update for a while, it's because I'm working on editing the earlier chapters.

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"Nice. What's the tie for?" Onua asked.

"Gali suggested I dress up for my date," Pohatu said, wrestling with the silk cloth, trying to coax it into the right shape.

"Here, let me try." Onua adjusted the tie and pulled it tight. "There."

Pohatu looked at it in the mirror of the back bathroom and ran his fingers through his hair. "Do I look okay?"

"Great. She should be here soon," Onua said, leaving the back bathroom. He and his brother had just gotten off of work and were about to head their separate ways for the night.

In front of the restaurant, Pohatu danced from one foot to another, a huge grin on his face.

"You really like her?" Onua asked.

"Well, just as a friend at first, I guess, but she's really sweet and pretty, and when I found out she liked me, I realized I kind of liked her too," Pohatu shrugged. "I like making her smile and laugh. She has the prettiest laugh." He stared off into the distance and smiled.

Onua chuckled. "Well, here she comes." He nudged his brother. Lanie was walking towards them with a slight bounce in her step. Her brown hair was pulled partially back in graceful waves. She wore a knee length purple dress with a gold edge around the bottom, and short, gauzy sleeves. While she beamed as she approached, Onua could see the tension in her posture. _She is probably nervous_, he thought.

"Hi Onua," she said as she came up. "Pohatu," she added shyly.

"Hey," Pohatu said. "You ready?" She nodded, so he offered his arm. Lanie took it gently, as if it would break with too much pressure. "See you later, Onua!" Pohatu called.

"See you later," Onua replied, watching them leave. Pohatu said something and Lanie started laughing, her entire body loosening. _They're a good match_, he thought, heading back to the Carpenter house. Past the old car shop, two blocks down, turn left, and head down the gravel road. It was an easy route, and not that long, so he and Pohatu usually walked there and back.

"Good! You're back! Lewa's been going crazy just sitting with the Makuta." Gali said as Onua came in.

"I'll go give him a break. Has he woken?" Onua asked.

"No, he hasn't," Gali replied as she stood. "I should check his wounds though, make sure that they're healing properly." She followed the Earth Toa into the den. There they found Lewa sitting upside down in a swivel chair, his feet sticking up in the air and a desperate look on his face.

"Thank the Great Spirit! Someone who's upawake!" he exclaimed, flipping off the chair into a standing position. Gali ignored him and knelt beside the still figure. Lewa soon left, eager to get away before he could be assigned more guard duty.

"He's healing, for now, but I can't figure out the cause of these wounds. It's almost as if… something was destroying him from the inside out." Gali shook her head. "But I don't know what it could be."

Onua shrugged and sat in the chair, silently offering to wait with Makuta Nukra. Gali nodded and left, probably heading upstairs by the direction she had taken. Onua glanced over at his momentary charge, easily memorizing every detail about him. He was paler than any of them, even Kopaka, and his black hair was plastered to his forehead with sweat. He moaned, tossing in his sleep. Onua left his chair and laid a hand on the Makuta's forehead, checking for a fever. A pale, bony hand shot out and grabbed Onua's wrist with surprising force.

"Why… why d-did you h-help… me?" the Makuta asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Because you needed help. It's what Toa do," Onua explained calmly.

"Then all Toa are fools," Nukra muttered darkly. He grabbed something from the side of his bed and, before Onua could react, stabbed a short black blade deep into the Toa of Earth's shoulder. Onua cried out in surprise and pain, the world around him dancing and fading in and out of focus. The Makuta leapt up, pulling the knife out with him and eliciting a gasp of pain from Onua, and stabbed at him again. The Toa of Earth managed to block this one, but got a long slash along his other arm. Blood was now flowing freely from both his left shoulder and his arm as the Makuta made another swipe. It was the Makuta's own injuries that saved Onua this time, as he missed the Toa of Earth's neck and instead caught his cheek.

"What's going on?" Jake Carpenter asked, horror written on his face. Nukra pulled back his arm to throw his blade at the boy, blood dripping down his sides from reopened wounds.

"No!" Onua cried, rushing forward. The Makuta turned and held the blade up. Onua was unable to stop, so he turned, attempting to avoid it, and felt the blade slide along his chest, opening a large wound. Nukra and Jake stared at Onua in shock as he collapsed onto the floor.

"Onua!" Jake yelled rushing forward. Makuta Nukra stumbled back and ran to the window, smashing into it in an attempt to break it. Onua pushed himself up, trying to stop Nukra's escape, but he collapsed his vision blurring.

"Onua! Onua, stay awake!" he heard Jake yell from far away. _No, I can't… I'm too tired…_ he thought woozily. Darkness closed in on his mind, pushing him into black oblivion. The last thing he heard before slipping away was the sound of glass shattering…


	34. Chapter 34: A Child's View

Um yeah, I am _really _sorry, Onua. I've always held you in high regard. Please don't be mad and haunt me for the rest of my life. Tahu's already going to kill me...

Disclaimer: Don't own Bionicle at all.

And I may not be updating for a while, because of mid-terms and lots of homework this week. But if you review, I might update sooner!!

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"Mom! Dad! Tak! Gali! Lewa! Onua's …" Jake yelled, his throat catching. Never had he been so scared in his life, not when Tak had been unconscious for two days, not when Gali had broken her leg, not even when Tak and his cousins had brought the three other Toa home all battered and bloodied. Now, staring at Onua's still body, lying in its own blood, fear coursed through his young body.

"What, what…" his mom's voice trailed off as she saw the young boy sitting beside the bloody figure on the ground. Jake turned to look at her, tears coursing down his cheeks.

"He's… I think he's… dead," Jake said in a soft voice. His mom slowly walked over to her son and knelt beside him. "That… that man… with the wings… he… he…" Jake began to cry, and soon found himself enveloped in his mother's arms. They just sat there together as Gali and Tahu, who Jake guessed had followed the young boy's cries of terror, came in. Jake heard Tahu give a cry of shock and rage at the sight of Onua lying in his own blood, and suddenly took off out the broken window. _He probably wants to avenge Onua_, Jake thought wearily. His mom stood and pulled him to his feet, handing him to Tak.

"C'mon, Jake, let's go get you cleaned off," Tak said slowly, his voice wavering. Jake allowed the golden-haired Toa to lead him away, up into his bedroom.

"Tak?" Jake asked, tears still pooling in his eyes. "Is Onua really…?"

Tak looked uncomfortable, and didn't meet the boy's eyes. "I-I don't know…" he finally admitted.

"H-he looked so… how could he…?" Jake tried to choke back his tears. _Big boys don't cry,_ he reminded himself. _They don't cry like little kids, they…._ The figurative dam broke, and Jake flung himself into Tak's arms, sobbing hysterically.

"I-I saw… I…" Jake tried to say.

"Shhh, it's …" Tak didn't finish his sentence, just held the boy. Jake just cried as if he would never stop, cried as if his world had ended. Because in a sense, it had. The complete fragility and mortality of everything had just come crashing down on him in one single, crushing blow.


	35. Chapter 35: Here Again

Okay... so I bet you're all wondering what happened to me and all... well, I got writer's block for about half a semester, then went home for Christmas and became busy with another old story I found in my room. Then I ended up taking a literature class and a creative writing class from the same professor, and that basically ate my life. I also had little computer usage this summer, since my old laptop died on me (this is a new, shiny one! Took me all summer to save up for it...). And so I was going back and editing the first few chapters (a lot!) when I realized I had an ending in mind. So, I finished up this chapter clip and am writing the ending now. I also have about a million chapters worth of ideas planned out, and probably only two percent of them on any form of paper or document. But I will finish this story first. I give you my word! Then I'll update it, and switch out the old chappys for new, shiny ones that implement the writing skill of someone who has actually learned how to write! See, those classes did do me some good!

Now that I think about it, you probably really don't care what I was up to, and really want to read this chapter, especially because of that cliff I left off on... and you probably are skimming this and won't notice the elephant right here... Oh, and I don't own Bionicle. This is a tribute to the amazingness that LEGO gave us. You should all go buy their stuff now. ... ON WITH THE SHOW! Oh, and Onua? I really am sorry...

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"Are you sure you don't mind?" Gali asked.

"I'm sure. You've been sitting here for much too long. I will stay with him. Go get some sleep," Pohatu commanded gently.

"All right just, call me if he wakes up," Gali replied, leaving the hospital room. Pohatu sighed as he watched her go. At the door, Mrs. Carpenter met her and gently steered the tired Water Toa to the food court, where the Carpenters and the Toa had taken up temporary residence. It was early, nearly three in the morning, but Pohatu didn't feel tired. He didn't feel much of anything, other than worry for his brother lying in the hospital bed beside him. After Makuta Nukra had attacked so suddenly, Onua had nearly died of blood loss. The doctors, though obviously not happy to see another one of the Toa coming in with no insurance and no explanation, did what they could to help him. While they had warned them that Onua's chances of survival weren't good, the Toa had hoped that their brother's strength and determination would pull him through. The steady beep of the equipment, representing Onua's heartbeats, was the only indication that he was alive.

_Hold on, brother. I know you have the strength_, Pohatu thought desperately, as if he could will his brother back to consciousness. To the Stone Toa's surprise, Onua stirred and slowly opened his eyes.

"Hey brother. Good to see you awake," Pohatu said softly. "Sort of," he added. They had made sure to keep the lights of the hospital room off, knowing his brother's sensitivity to bright lights, so it was hard to see much.

"Hey," Onua replied. He held out a shaky fist, which Pohatu gently met with his own.

"How are you feeling?" Pohatu asked.

Onua tried to shrug and winced.

"All right, stupid question," Pohatu chuckled. Onua smiled.

"It's good to be back," the Earth Toa said softly. "What happened?"

"Well, Nukra… attacked you. We were pretty scared for a while. The doctors said that you… might not have made it," Pohatu explained.

"Oh! You're awake!" Pohatu looked up to see a nurse standing in the doorway. She was oddly familiar, with short black hair and bright brown eyes. She walked over to Onua's bed and began to check over various things.

"… so, are you his… brother?" she asked, glancing at Pohatu. The Stone Toa nodded. "You were here before, weren't you?"

"Yeah, my… cousins were in the hospital a few days ago," Pohatu replied.

The nurse laughed. "I remember them. The red haired one— Tahu was it? He got most of the doctors mad at him when he tried to get up right after surgery."

Pohatu laughed as well, and Onua chuckled.

"I'm Stephanie, by the way. I'm not sure if I introduced myself earlier." She held out her hand. It had taken him a bit to figure out the hand shake (Onua had caught on quickly), but he now recognized the gesture easily. Pohatu took her hand and shook it gently.

"Pohatu," he replied.

"Onua," the Earth Toa said. His voice was still soft, as if talking to much would drain him. Pohatu glanced at his brother and up at the nurse. She smiled down at Onua and told him to rest. He compliantly closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, to Pohatu's surprise. _Guess he knows what's best for him_, Pohatu thought.

"And how much sleep have you gotten? You look exhausted," Stephanie added after a moment.

"Oh, I'm…" a yawn escaped him. "…fine," Pohatu finished sheepishly. He hadn't slept since a few hours after Makuta Nukra's strange appearance. Gali had assured them all that Nukra's injuries weren't faked, as Tahu had claimed, but Pohatu still shuddered at what that Makuta could have done, had he not fled.

"Why don't you get some rest? I can bring a cot up here, or grab you a pillow and blanket, if you'd rather just sleep in the chair," Stephanie offered.

"I'll be…" yawn. "…fine here." Now that Pohatu wasn't worried about his brother, he realized how tired he was. He sat down, beginning to feel dizzy from lack of sleep. "Could you, um, go down to the cafeteria and tell the rest of my…" yawn "…family that Onua was awake? They've been pretty worried," Pohatu asked. His eyes seemed to be growing heavier every moment, and the chair was comfortable.

"Sure. I know I can recognize them," Stephanie said. She gathered up her papers and, with one quick glance at Onua, left, closing the door behind her. Pohatu let his eyes slide shut and quickly dropped off to sleep, curled up in the green plastic easy chair beside his brother's bed.

"Thank Mata Nui he's all right," Tahu muttered under his breath after the nurse had relayed the news. Lewa silently agreed, though he hadn't heard his fire brother. The Air Toa had been pacing the length of the cafeteria for the last few hours. It had probably been driving everyone crazy, now that he thought about it, but he had been worried, and movement helped take his mind off things. Had he been back home, he would have taken to the trees, or the air, or even just been doing handstands and back flips, just to keep his thoughts away from his brother's condition. Now, after having Tahu, Gali, Kopaka, Lanie, and Mrs. Carpenter all warn him, at separate times, about being too "rambunctious" in the hospital (whatever that meant), he limited his activity urges to pacing. And consequently driving everyone crazy.

"Do any of you want to head home and get some rest, now that he's out of danger?" Mrs. Carpenter asked. Her husband had opted to take the day off work and stay with the kids while she drove the Toa to the hospital. Only Jake had insisted on coming with, asserting that he had to know if Onua was okay. The boy was now sleeping on the floor, Tahu's sweatshirt bundled up under his head like a pillow.

"I'll stay here with Onua," Kopaka replied, not looking up from his book. Lewa still didn't get how he could just sit there and read after his brother had almost died.

"Me too. But you may want to take Takanuva, Gali, and Lewa with you," Tahu added.

"I'm awake," Takanuva muttered wearily. He had laid his head down nearly half an hour ago and hadn't stirred the entire time.

"I just want to quicksee Earthbrother," Lewa replied. Gali was sleeping on Tahu's shoulder, unintentionally, and so didn't reply.

"You should probably wake her," Mrs. Carpenter said, "if she'll be going." Tahu glanced at Gali and frowned slightly.

"She's been doing so much," he murmured. Lewa watched as the Fire Toa gently picked Gali up and stood. "I'll carry her." Lewa saw Kopaka smirk as Tahu headed to the door. Gali gently nestled up against his chest in her sleep, and Lewa stuffed his fist in his mouth to hide a grin. He didn't feel guilty at his amusement, now that Onua was out of danger.

"Suit yourself, but be careful. You still haven't healed fully," Mrs. Carpenter said as she helped Takanuva to his feet. He blinked a few times, then gently picked Jake up and followed Tahu.

"I'll go and tell Pohatu that you are leaving," Kopaka said. "He'll probably want to get some sleep." Lewa darted after the Toa of Ice, ignoring Tahu's glare, and followed him up the stairs and through the maze of identical hallways.

"Pohatu? Are you awake?" Kopaka asked softly as he entered the dark room. Lewa stood on his tiptoe, peering over Kopaka's shoulder. Onua was sleeping soundly in the hospital bed, and Pohatu was curled up on the chair next to the bed, sleeping just as deeply. Kopaka sighed and went over to wake the Stone Toa.

"He looks… pale-tired," Lewa said softly.

"Most people do when they are recovering. The blood that would normally be in his face is going to help oxygenate the blood cells that are repairing the damage," Kopaka replied as Pohatu stood and stretched, yawning. Lewa turned and looked at Kopaka in complete confusion, blinking a few times as he tried to comprehend what the Ice Toa had said.

"What does that mean?" he finally asked. Kopaka rolled his eyes, but said nothing.

"What are you two doing up here?" Pohatu asked blearily.

"Tahu and I are staying here. You two are leaving with Mrs. Carpenter," Kopaka explained briefly.

"Oh, okay. You sure you and Tahu won't kill each other or anything?" Pohatu joked. Lewa burst out laughing and had to bite his fist to keep it quiet. A cold glare from Kopaka cut off any witty addition Lewa wanted to add. The Toa of Air quelled his laughter.

"We should probably get going. Mrs. Carpenter will be waiting out in the parking lot, right?" Pohatu asked. Kopaka nodded, sitting beside Onua's bed, and the two Toa left.

"I'm guessthinking that you'll be the wayfinder," Lewa said, glancing down the hallway. "All these passagehalls look the same to me."

"Sure, I think I know my way out," Pohatu replied. He turned down a few halls, went down a flight of stairs, and wandered through another few hallways before admitting that he was lost.

"Okay, maybe I don't know my way out…" He looked around for a bit.

"Hey, that sign statesays the parking lot is this way!" Lewa called, pointing. Sure enough, the green metal clearly stated the parking lot was only down that corridor. And up a flight of stairs. And down another two corridors. Then left down another corridor and out two automatic doors to the second floor of the parking garage.

"Wow…" Lewa gasped, looking around. _There are a lot of cars here_, he decided.

"Yeah…" Pohatu stared at the variety of vehicles. This place was huge! How would they ever find—

"Are you guys coming?" The two Toa turned to see Mrs. Carpenter standing by the old station wagon, waving. Sheepishly, they bolted over and piled in, having to sit in the very back, as all other seats were taken.

"What took you?" Mrs. Carpenter asked softly. The rest of the car was either asleep or almost there.

"Got a little turned around. That's all," Pohatu shrugged. He laid his head on the headrest and closed his eyes. The life of a Toa really wasn't conducive to sleeping.

* * *

:)

I gotcha good, didn't I? I honestly didn't intend to leave off there for so long, but writer's block is a cruel, cruel thing... mostly to you guys, since I only just wrote the last little bit.

Lewa and Pohatu's little excursion is mostly based on my own experiences with hospitals. Mainly that everything looks the same, and I was always glad that my mom knew which room my dad was in this time. I'm writing the conclusion now, and know how it's going to pan out. There will be a sequel, and many more after that (I just can't resist messing with these guys... they're way too fun), so this isn't the end. Yet.


	36. Chapter 36: Epilogue

Here it is. The final chapter. Good reading, all!

Disclaimer: No owning of Bionicle here. Just a really long fanfic, and a few humans

* * *

"He's still out," Kopaka informed his brother as Tahu entered. The Fire Toa nodded and sat down. This was a rare occasion, him willingly staying at the hospital, but Tahu felt he and Kopaka needed to talk. Though they still argued, mostly out of habit, Tahu knew Kopaka was the best planner of them all. They had much to discuss, and this was probably the only chance they'd get.

"So… any idea how to get back?" he asked. Kopaka raised an eyebrow quizzically, but shook his head. Tahu figured so, but felt better asking. Assumptions were more Lewa's department.

"You?" he asked.

"Nothing. It's weird, though, but I think we're supposed to be here." Kopaka took this in with a soft nod, and glanced at Onua.

"We are together. That is where we belong," he finally said. Tahu chuckled.

"I think I need documentation on that coming out of your mouth." The Fire Toa smirked, but he understood what Kopaka was getting at. It was good that they were all together now, even though he and Lewa would be starting up at Alf's Groceries soon. Gali had mentioned taking over Onua's place at the fast food restaurant, "until he's well enough to work" she'd added quickly.

"Will you and Lewa go back to living at the grocery store?" Kopaka asked. Tahu's smirk faded to a scowl. He hated it when Kopaka seemed to read his mind.

"Maybe, maybe not. Easier commute that way. What about you? Takanuva's going to start working at the Carpenter's bakery soon, so that just leaves you without a job," he retorted. Kopaka seemed to consider the question for a long moment.

"I will find a way to occupy my time," he finally said with a shrug. Tahu chose not to press the issue, and walked over to the window. Though he'd chased Makuta Nukra for nearly a mile, he'd seen no sign of the shadow being. Their last link to their home world seemed to have vanished into the woods. He hoped for forever, however vain a hope it was.

"He will return, you know," Kopaka said. Tahu turned to glare at his brother. Did Kopaka somehow find a mask of telepathy, or was his own body language that easy to read? "Do you have a plan?"

"I figured I'd leave that up to you, with all your spare time," Tahu retorted with a smirk. His icy brother nodded at the backhanded compliment.

"Splitting up will make us easier targets," Kopaka murmured, more to himself. "But does not endanger our human companions as greatly."

"Nukra seemed half-dead already, and for no reason," Tahu added.

"His powers were not weak, as ours were," Kopaka mused. He sat back and placed his hands together, just the fingertips, and stared off into space. Tahu turned back to the window in time to see the sun crest the hill, spilling its fiery light over the small town. He smiled. Kopaka would come up with some plan, they'd argue about it, and probably end up going along with it anyway. Gali would probably get mad at him for arguing, but she'd ease up later when it mattered. They'd come together at the last moment, if necessary, and defeat Nukra. They'd taken down many others before him. Few who had stood in their way could say they'd triumphed. Many weren't around to testify. The sun unleashed its full fury on Tahu, and he felt his strength grow. None could beat them, he knew. Not here, nor in their homeland. For they were together, and they were Toa.

* * *

Wow. I actually finished it. Took me long enough, but I did it. I wanted to thank all you who helped me, those who read through the early drafts, those who listened to me ramble on about ideas, those who answered my apparently random questions without thought. A special thanks goes out to Mikell, one of my favorite authors here. Though I'm not sure if she'll read this (her fandom and area of expertise is in Ninja Turtles), she really inspired me to go ahead and post my stories. Hers are amazing, and I look forward to reading them every time she posts

As this is the first story I've finished, I'm going to take a page from Mikell's book and thank all who took the time and thought to review and add a smile to my day. Thank you very much:

Wolfgirl 881- for always reviewing so promptly, even when I forgot to update.

Athena's Assassin- for your excitement at the tiniest bit of romance, and for reviewing nearly every single chapter.

Brainz4Christ- for surviving the Toa visiting (attacking) your home, and for cheering at even the little things, like Lewa hovering again.

Bookman Jr- for encouraging my more… violent sections.

Alykon- for liking even the sad, short chapters in my story

Repicheep22- for reading my story even though it was a human Toa story

BroadwayBoundLoser16- for your encouragement

Twilight Spectrum- for asking me to keep writing, and providing helpful advice

Miss Cupid- for help with those… special parts of the story ;)

InTheLight1369- for the thumbs up

AEtherealDevastation- for hoping for an update

Altairey- for reminding to update someday

TasumiDreamer- for reminding me that people were actually interested

Jedi Master Kit Fisto- for reviewing even though you didn't know me too well

Gameoner- for reminding me to update more than once a year. And I am sorry, don't worry ;)

Alex- for being excited about the sequel

Thank you all for your patience and your amazing reader-ship through this all. I am sorry about the delay, it honestly wasn't intentional. You all played a huge part in my growing confidence as a writer. Thank you all, and thank you those who didn't review, for reading my work. You all rock, and get awesome points! If I had the authority to give them out, that is…


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